


The Story of a Hero and a Villain

by SingingInTheRaiin



Category: The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types
Genre: F/M, and others are destined to be dicks, bad decisions everywhere, it's awkward being the only hero in a family of villains, it's quite fun to think of all the ways I can make everyone's bizarro versions, role reversals everywhere, some people are destined for greatness
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-03-31
Updated: 2019-04-01
Packaged: 2019-04-16 07:03:06
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 26
Words: 77,061
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14159382
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SingingInTheRaiin/pseuds/SingingInTheRaiin
Summary: James Rogers is in love with Torunn Thorsdottir, but she doesn't return his feelings. He wishes that all the heroes would be villains and vice versa, so that his love interest wouldn't be so occupied with saving the world, and would have time to actually notice him for once. The Scarlet Witch's powers go out of control, and he gets his wish. He has to learn the hard way that being a hero is part of who you are, no matter what.





	1. Chapter 1

Prologue

James smiled at Torunn. She was waving her sword around as the civilians around them cheered. They all loved her so much. She was the daughter of Thor, and they had grown up together, since his parents were Steve Rogers and Natalia Romanova. She seemed perfect in nearly every way, and in fact, James could only think of one thing about her that he didn’t like. And that was the fact that she pretty much always ignored him, as if he weren’t even worth her time. 

Once the parade in honor of the young Avengers was over, they all retired back to the Avengers towers. James grabbed Torunn’s arm, and pulled her aside to talk to her. She was the one who had saved all of them this time, and he was grateful. He just wanted to tell her that, but as soon as they were in an empty room, the alarm went off. She ran off with a brief apology. To her, nothing was more important than saving people, and doing the right thing. 

James slammed his fist into the wall, accidentally punching a hole straight through. It was impossible to get a chance to talk with her, because she was always running off and being a hero. He knew that the same was expected of him, but after that incident last year, he had been told to stay on the sidelines for a while.

Since all the Avengers and their kids were always off fighting crime, leaving him alone, he had found plenty of time to explore the city without getting chewed out. Steve and Natalia were pretty strict about him staying in the tower when they were gone, and even Tony, his adoptive father, seemed to agree with that. It was unfair. How could James ever hope to win Torunn’s affection if he couldn’t even prove to her that he could be just as good a hero as anyone else?

As soon as the tower was empty, James left as well, ignoring all the people who’d told him to stay behind, and he made his way to the Bronx, where one of his friends lived. He had met her when her brother decided to become an Avenger, and she had decided that they were going to be friends. It wasn’t like James had many people he could call friends, so he often found himself trying to spend time with this one. He knocked politely on her door once he was there, about twenty minutes later.

She answered with a knowing grin, and gestured for James to enter. He did, and made himself comfortable on the big couch. “James. How lovely to see you. What’s the occasion?”

He crossed his arms over his chest. “I just need to talk to someone, and you’re the first person that came to mind. Sorry.”

She handed him a glass of soda, then sat down next to him. “No, it’s fine. I just thought that you would rather talk to someone your own age.” She was in her mid twenties, and he was only seventeen. He didn’t see the problem with that, since he was basically an adult, which put him in the same age group as his friend. And it was also another reason he couldn’t stand being told to stay behind. He was old enough to make those decisions himself. 

James shrugged. He didn’t really know anyone his own age who wasn’t currently out risking their life for the sake of the city. He sighed. “The thing is, I have a friend, Torunn Thorsdottir, and I don’t know when exactly I realized, but I know that I love her. But she doesn’t even notice me. She’s always too busy off fighting crime and whatever else. I can’t… I don’t know how to catch her attention. You must know something about how to deal with girls, right?”

Wanda Maximoff nodded. “I remember what it’s like to be in love with someone who doesn’t return your feelings. It can be tough, but you will manage to get over her, and find someone new to give your heart to.”

James shook his head, and kept talking. That was definitely not the answer that he’d been expecting, and it wasn’t the answer that he wanted to hear. James didn’t want to just give up on Torunn. She was the only one for him. Clearly Wanda didn’t understand the situation as much as he’d thought she would. As he kept rambling on, he didn’t notice that his friend suddenly looked dazed. “I just wish that the world was different. Like what if all the heroes and villains just kinda swapped roles? Then she wouldn’t be too busy saving the world to look my way. I know Torunn’s a good person, so she wouldn’t be evil, obviously, but she wouldn’t be a hero either. It would be perfect, don’t you think?”

Wanda screamed suddenly, and James jumped up in surprise. Her whole body was shaking, and suddenly the room was filled with a red light. He gasped. His friend had lost control of her powers right while he was talking about an alternate reality… oh boy, that wasn’t going to end up well.

He reached out, maybe in an attempt to comfort or calm her, but the red light exploded out, and his vision was filled with red, and nothing else.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter One**

Torunn stared across the table with stars in her eyes. How could she not be totally in love with the man across from her? He cleared his throat, smoothed his hair back, and slipped off of his chair, down on one knee. Torunn’s eyes widened, and she clasped her hands together tightly. “Torunn Natasha Andrews, will you marry me?”

She nodded, and reached down to grab his hand. “Yes, of course!” He slid the ring onto her finger, and gazed up at her with adoration in his eyes. Torunn felt a pang of guilt in her stomach. Victor didn’t know her true identity. But she was going to tell him. Tonight, obviously. She hadn’t planned on it being so soon, but they loved each other so much that she doubted it would cause too much trouble between them. She pulled him up for a kiss. “Babe, I need to tell you something.”

He nodded. “There’s something important that I need to tell you, too. But not here.” He reached out, and she gladly accepted his hand. They walked together down the street, laughing and talking about random things. Their apartment was only a few blocks away, so that’s where he led her to. They got inside and kicked their shoes off.

Victor kissed Torunn, then stepped back. “Babe… the truth is- and I know that this is probably going to make me sound like I’m completely crazy- but I’m a superhero. I’m the hero known as Doctor Doom.”

Torunn stared at her fiance in shock. “You’re… what?” Of all the things he could’ve possibly wanted to tell her, that hadn’t even ranked on the scale.

He pulled her into a hug. “I know it’s a lot to take in, and I know that you probably think that I’m a liar for never having told you this sooner. And I promise that I’ll come home every night, no matter what. I feel so much better now that I’ve told you that. I wouldn’t be able to survive a marriage if I was keeping such a big secret from you. But I couldn’t tell you before this, because no matter how much I trusted you, it could be dangerous for both of us if you were to know the truth.” He smiled, and as they both sank down onto the couch, he reached out to grab one of Torunn’s hands and give it a gentle squeeze. “So what is it you want to tell me?”

Torunn shook her head. “Nothing. It’s absolutely nothing.”

Victor grinned. “Just trying to get me to bring you back here?”

Torunn smiled weakly. “Yup. You saw right through me. You know, I’m not feeling well right now. I think it’s probably best if we just go to bed.”

Victor smiled. “Why not let the good old doctor have a look at you?” He went to pull her in for another kiss, but Torunn pushed him back. He frowned. “Hey, what’s wrong? Is it the superhero thing? It’s weirding you out, isn’t it?”

Torunn bit her lip, then turned back to Victor. She pulled off his ring. “I can’t marry you.” It burned to admit, but she knew that things would never work out between them. Not anymore. 

Any remaining joy on Victor’s face was immediately gone. “What are you talking about? Why not?” He sounded desparate, and Torunn didn’t want to lie to him if she was just going to break up with him anyways. 

Torunn sat down at the kitchen table. “Victor, do you think that people should be judged based off of their parents or their family?”

Victor shook his head. “Of course not. A person should only ever be based off of his or her own actions. Why?”

Torunn took a deep breath, and fidgeted with the ring that was still in her hand, but she didn’t put it back onto her finger. “Remember how I said that me and my parents aren’t very close?” Victor nodded, but didn’t say anything. He didn’t want to get her off track. “Well, that’s true. I haven’t even talked to them in years. The reason we’re not close is because I’ve always disagreed with their lifestyle.” When the pause lasted too long, Victor nodded for his fiance to continue. He stood up so that he could crouch down and continued to hold one of her hands in a comforting grip. She sighed. “Ah, screw it. I just need to say it. Victor, my dad is Thor, and my mom is Sif.”

Victor immediately let go of Torunn’s hand and stood back up, and he slowly backed away. “This is some sick joke, right? To get back at me for lying all these years?”

Torunn shook her head, and she could feel tears building up. “I’m also the superhero known as Lightning. I’ve tried to do everything within my power to undo the terrible things that my parents have done. I’m not like them, Victor. You know me. You know who I am.”

Victor stepped back. “Whatever’s going on here I don’t want any part of it.”

Torunn couldn’t hide the hurt in her eyes. “But you just said that you wouldn’t judge someone because of their family. And the reason that we’re not close is because I didn’t like how they were villains, so I went out and became a superhero just to rebel against them! They have nothing to do with who I am! Why would I even tell you these things if I was a bad guy?”

Victor shook his head. “I don’t know. To gain my trust, or my sympathy or something.”

Torunn threw the ring at the man. “This is why I said that I can’t marry you!”

Victor’s nose flared. “How long were planning on keeping this from me?”

The young woman stood up. “I was going to tell you as soon as we got home, that’s why I said I needed to talk to you! Why can’t you just believe me?”

Victor shook his head menacingly. “If you don’t leave in the next thirty seconds, I swear, I will throw you out myself. And trust me when I say that that would not be pleasant.” Torunn stormed over to the door. Victor added softly, “The only reason I’m not calling in the rest of the team to capture you is because even if you feel nothing for me, I still love you.”

Torunn spun around. “Oh, screw you! You may think that you’re a hero, but at least my family wouldn’t turn on me for something that’s out of my control. I never asked for my parents to be super villains, but that’s what I have, and they’re a hell of a lot more accepting than you! Even now, knowing that I’m a superhero, they would willingly take me back! I hope that you get everything that’s coming to you!”

Victor kept his voice calm and even. “Torunn. It’s time for you to leave, before you do something that we’ll both regret.”

She glared. “The only thing I regret is ever getting involved with such a heartless son of a bitch!” She stormed out of the apartment, not caring that all of her things were still inside. She doubted that Victor was going to put together a break up box to try and get her back, but she could just get new things. Things were replaceable. Broken hearts were not.

***

Peter looked up in surprise as he heard someone pounding on his door. He glanced at his clock, and saw that it was eleven at night, a bit late for a social visit. And the knocking sounded off balance, and not timed properly. He went over and cautiously opened the door.

A very tipsy looking Torunn was standing there, and she grinned once she saw that Peter had opened the door for her. “Hey..?”

She pulled him forward into a hug. “Did you know that you are the best friend that I have ever had in my whole life?”

Peter frowned. “I’m pretty sure that I’m the only friend you’ve ever had. But we haven’t talked in what… three years now? Ever since you ran off to do your superhero thing. You really shouldn’t be here. If anyone saw you talking with me, they might recognize us, and realize that you have connections to all the bad guys. It’s too dangerous for you to be here.”

Torunn stared at him blankly as she tried to figure out what he was saying. After a few minutes, she gave up. Either that, or she just forgot what they had been talking about. “I got a boyfriend while I was away. Derek. That son of a bitch. I hate him so much.” Even drunk, she was smart enough to not give away Victor’s real identity. Though she wasn’t nearly as inebriated as she was acting, because being an Asgardian meant that the alcohol she could find in any regular bar would do basically nothing for her. But even if she was completely wasted, she wouldn’t give out Victor’s real name. Who knew what a family of villains might do to the person who’d broken Torunn’s heart? And she did still care about him, despite what a dick he’d been. 

Peter pulled Torunn into the apartment, since it didn’t seem like she planned on leaving anytime soon. “Why? What did he do?”

Torunn hiccuped. “He proposed to me. So I felt that it would be wrong to keep things from my husband. I told him about mom and dad and me being Lightning. Turns out he’s Doctor Doom, and he dumped my ass in a heartbeat. I guess I can’t blame him. What kind of hero would knowingly sleep with the enemy?”

Peter sighed, and gathered Torunn into his arms. “Hey, it’ll be okay, I promise. I’ll make sure to kick his ass extra hard next time we’re facing off against each other.”

Torunn smiled. Then she sighed, and went into Peter’s room to flop onto his bed. It was a habit that she was all too used to from back when they were younger. Whenever something bad had happened, she would crawl into his bed, and feel better. And even though she was wasted, at least a little bit, Peter didn’t have to worry about her puking on the sheets, because she was Asgardian, and her body would heal her of any potential alcohol poisoning before she woke up.

Peter pulled the covers up to her chin, and kissed the top of her head. He had missed having his best friend around. Everything seemed too lonely and quiet without her noisy presence. She got that from her father, who always had the ability to fill any room he walked into. 

Peter hoped that her return would be permanent, but he wasn’t going to get his hopes too high up. But he did know that the next time Doom tried to interfere with one of his heists, he was going to make the man regret breaking his best friend’s heart.


	3. Chapter 3

James groaned as he slowly came to awareness. He could feel a headache pounding through him, and it felt like someone had decided to smash him with a hammer a few times, and then play the cymbals a few times right next to him just for fun. It reminded him a lot of that time he’d stolen from Tony’s private stash of booze, and had woken up totally hungover the next morning. His dad had decided that the hangover would be punishment enough, and James had vowed that he’d never touch a drop of alcohol again. And considering the fact that he’d definitely kept that promise, James was rather confused about why he felt like he’d gotten run over by a truck after having his head slammed in a doorway a few times. 

Tired of trying to come up with more metaphors for how shitty he felt, James forced himself to open his eyes. The room was completely dark, which was a good sign. Only a moron would leave the lights on after a night of heavy drinking. Not that James could actually remember drinking at all, of course, but that was neither here nor there. 

He got up, letting out a soft groan as the change in position reminded him of how much gravity seemed to hate him. He felt too heavy for his body, and had to drag himself to the bathroom. 

The only problem was that when he opened his bedroom door, light flooded in from the hallway, illuminating everything that had previously been bathed in darkness. This was definitely not his bedroom. And a quick glance out into the too-bright hallway made it clear that he was not at home in the tower. So where the hell was he?

He was going to stumble out to explore his surroundings, since it seemed like the first thing to do when waking up in an unknown place would be to get an idea of the layout. But he could hear laughter, and voices, and when he glanced down, he realized that he was wearing nothing but a pair of boxers. 

Even more strange, though, was his body. He did not remember having thighs so thick with muscle, and he definitely hadn’t had a six-pack last night. Where the hell was the bathroom? James needed to figure out what the hell was going on before his parents found out first and chewed him out for it. 

He took a step back into the safety and comfort of the dark bedroom, and the floor creaked softly beneath his feet. The voices went silent for a moment, and then a familiar voice called out, “James? You up, buddy?”

James felt his shoulders slump down as the tension drained out of him. Whatever was going on had some reasonable explanation, and Peter was a genius so he’d be able to figure out whatever the problem was. “Yeah-” James frowned at the sound of his own voice. It was deeper than it was supposed to be.

Not caring about confronting Peter in his boxers, since the two of them had known each other forever and were practically like brothers, he headed in the direction that the voice had come from. He still wasn’t sure where he was, but hopefully things would start to make more sense soon enough. 

He emerged from the narrow hallway into a wide open room, where there was a couch facing away from him, and he immediately felt embarrassed when he saw a girl sitting on the next to Peter. He didn’t remember Peter having a girlfriend, but either way she probably didn’t want to see some random guy basically naked-

She turned around, and James felt like his heart suddenly stopped beating. It wasn’t a girl sitting there, it was a young woman. But she looked scarily like Torunn. The same wavy blonde hair, though it fell further than he could see from where he was sitting, certainly below her shoulders, which meant it was much longer than James remembered. But she had the same bright blue eyes, and the same patch of freckles just below her hairline. Her face was the same shape, and she seemed to be just a few inches taller. The only other big difference from Torunn, besides her age, was the small silver scar that went down through her left eyebrow. 

She offered James a tentative smile. “Hey, sorry, didn’t mean to wake you up. I know you guys weren’t expecting me, but Peter let me in pretty late last night, and you were already conked out.”

When James took a few steps closer, he could see that this woman’s eyes were a bit red, most likely from crying. Then her words sank in, and he couldn’t help feeling even more confused than before. This woman was acting like they knew each other. Was she related to Torunn in some way?

She furrowed her eyebrows when she saw how much confusion was playing across James’ face. “Hey, is everything alright with you? You look a little out of it.”

James blinked a few times. His body was more advanced than it was supposed to be, and his voice was deeper. And the woman looked like a slightly older version of Torunn, though she sounded almost the same. And then Peter turned around. He was definitely the one who’d spoken before, in the voice that James was used to, but this man looked too old to be Peter.

That’s when James suddenly remembered what had happened last before he’d woken up here. He’d gone to Wanda, and he’d made his usual complaints about Torunn not liking him the way he liked her, and then Wanda had screamed, and everything had gone red. James wasn’t stupid enough to think that Wanda’s powers going off was inconsequential. Everyone was older than he was used to. Had Wanda somehow sent him to the future? It wasn't like anyone truly knew the scope of her powers.

This was one of the few times that James felt lucky to come from a family of superheroes. If anyone was going to know how to help him get back to normal, it would be one of them. And Peter was especially smart, and looked like he had already graduated college by now, so surely he’d know something. 

“James?” Torunn looked more concerned when James didn’t actually say anything. “Is it freaking you out for me to be here? I know we haven’t talked in a while, but I wasn’t sure where else to go last night. If you’re uncomfortable though, I can leave-”

“No!” James quickly shook his head. “No, it’s okay. Stay. I’ll be right back. I just need to get dressed.” He turned and ran back down the narrow hallway. It wasn’t anything like the version of Peter’s apartment that he remembered. In fact, it was much nicer than anything the struggling college student would’ve been able to afford before. He silently commended Peter for an actual well-paying job. 

He went back into the room that he’d woken up in, and fumbled around to find a lightswitch. When he found it, he was able to get a better look around. The room certainly felt like a place he’d have no problem living in. He went over to the dresser, and shuffled through all the drawers until he managed to procure a pair of jeans and a tee shirt. At first glance they looked like they’d be too large, but they actually fit when he put them on. There was a mirror hanging on the back of the door that he hadn’t noticed before, and he stopped to study himself. 

He looked a lot more like his dad than he had as a teenager. He’d built up a lot of muscle over the past however many years it had been, and he looked a bit like a model. James wondered if Torunn would be more into him now that he looked like this. But hadn’t she said something about them not talking in a while? James could punch his future self for that. 

After looking at his reflection for another minute, James made his way back to the open space where Torunn and Peter were waiting. They both had worried looks on their faces, and James couldn’t really blame them. They had to think he was acting like some kind of madman. 

He walked around the couch to stand in front of them. “Alright, this is going to sound totally insane, but I’m not supposed to be here right now.”

Peter arched one eyebrow. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

James gulped. Even though they were all superheroes and had seen all kinds of weird stuff, he knew that time travel was a new one. “I’m only seventeen. I think that Wanda accidentally sent me to the future.”

Torunn stood up, and took a few steps closer to James, though she had a wary look on his face. “Are you drunk? I know that it can’t have been easy for you lately, and I know that I should’ve gone to the funeral, but-”

“Funeral? Whose funeral?” 

Torunn glanced back at Peter, who just shrugged, and then she looked at James again. “Are you serious right now? Do you really think you’re just a teenager.”

James clenched his jaw. “I don’t think that; I know it. It’s just the truth. How old am I supposed to be right now?”

It looked like Torunn was thinking about whether to respond or not before she finally offered, “Your twenty-seventh birthday was a month ago. Don’t you at least remember that?”

James shook his head. “Like I said, I’m only seventeen.” He knew that he sounded a little desperate, but he couldn’t help it. If these two didn’t believe him, then it was likely that no one would, and he’d be stuck living in the future without having had any choice in the things he did for the past ten years.

A small frown took place on Torunn for a moment before she wiped it away. “I believe you,” she said softly. “It’s crazy, but we’ve seen all kinds of crazy things before. But who’s Wanda? You said that she did this to you?”

James nodded. “Yeah, you know, Wanda Maximoff? Pietro’s brother?”

Now it was Torunn’s turn to look confused. “I have no idea who you’re talking about right now.” She crossed her arms over her chest. “Your best bet is probably to have Peter take you to the tower. The people there have always been fascinated by weird things, so maybe he’d be able to figure out some kind of solution?”

“Why can’t you take me?”

Peter finally took the opportunity to cut in. “Jesus, you really don’t remember anything, do you? Maybe you really are from the past, or maybe you hit your head hard enough to knock away the past decade; either way it’s crazy. But Torunn can’t come to the tower. I guess it makes sense that you wouldn’t know that, since she didn’t leave until you guys were eighteen. It’s probably best if we get you there as soon as possible. I’ll try to explain some stuff on the way, but ten years is a big gap to fill in.”

James didn’t like the idea of Torunn not being able to go with them, and he couldn’t figure out why she wouldn’t be allowed to. When they were teenagers, she’d clearly shown that she had great potential to be a hero, so the others in the tower should love her now that she’s an adult. And even if she’d decided to not become a hero afterall, which James highly doubted based on everything he knew about her, it wasn’t like her parents would just kick her out. So he couldn’t figure out what could’ve caused her to not be able to go to the tower. 

But he could understand the importance of getting to an adult with his current problems. Well, technically all three of them were adults, but James couldn’t help thinking of the older generation of Avengers as the adults anyways. “Alright. Let’s go.”

Peter looked over at Torunn with an expression that James didn’t recognize. “You should probably head home,” he said softly. “Not that I don’t love having you here, but-”

Torunn nodded. “I get it. It was nice to see you again, Peter.” She pulled him into a hug that lasted longer than a proper hug should. Then she stepped back and looked at James. “I hope you manage to get everything figured out. Adulthood is confusing enough when you know exactly how you got there.” She looked to Peter again. “You guys go on ahead. I’m going to get washed up before I head out. Don’t worry, I’ll be sure to lock the door behind me.”

James felt like he had so much to say to Torunn, but it was obvious that she wasn’t really in the mood to chat, and she was right about it being best to get him sent back to his own time as soon as possible. So he let himself be led out of the apartment, and outside. He wasn’t sure what part of the city they were in, but the people walking around and the buildings everywhere let him know that at least they were still in the city. 

He turned in a slow circle, then came to a sudden halt when he spotted the Avengers’ tower in the distance. Or at least, it’s what should’ve been the Avengers’ tower. But instead of the blue ‘A’ that let everyone know who lived there, it said ‘STARK’ across it, and the letters were a dark red instead of a light blue. “Why would they change the tower back?”

Peter followed his gaze, then looked at James. “What are you talking about? That’s how it’s always looked. Come on, let’s go. I want you checked over sooner rather than later. If it turns out that you’ve gotten some kind of severe brain damage and turned into a mental case, I don’t think your mom will ever forgive me.”

James could understand that feeling. He knew that his mother could be quite intimidating when she wanted to. And by that, he meant she could be quite intimidating all of the time because she was a scary woman. His dad in comparison was a little cartoony, and nothing to fear unless you were a villain. 

They got into the first cab that pulled over, and started towards the tower. Apparently the Stark tower rather than the Avengers’ tower. Hopefully there weren’t too many other differences in this time. 

As they got closer, James realized that the cab driver kept looking back at him in the rearview mirror, and he looked quite apprehensive. James frowned, trying to figure out why this man would be looking at him like that. Then again, even though he wasn’t famous in his own time, since the adults all insisted on him staying lowkey, maybe by twenty-seven he’d made enough of a name for himself that he was just as much a celebrity as the others in his family. 

When the cab stopped, they got out, though Peter didn’t offer any fare money. When the driver looked like he was about to complain, Peter shot the man a mean look, and the man quickly drove away. That didn’t seem like Peter at all. Even if his colleague had more money now, he was the type who’d always try to tip well to show his solidarity with the lower class. And there’s no way he’d just take a cab without paying anything. That was basically robbery.

He wanted to demand some answers, but Peter grabbed him by the arm and pulled him into the building. The lobby was empty, probably due to the early hour, but Peter dragged him over to the main desk. “Hey Patty. We’re heading up.”

The woman nodded. “Sure thing, Mr. Parker.”

Then Peter pulled James over to the elevator that was for Avengers and company only. As they headed up, James couldn’t help looking around, trying to figure out if anything looked more high-tec than he was used to. For the most part, the elevator remained the same. It probably wasn’t one of the big priorities when it came to technological innovation. 

Though he did find it a bit strange that Friday didn’t try to greet them at all as they rode up. Usually she was quite friendly with the Avengers. Was it possible for an AI to sleep? Maybe she was still asleep in that case. 

When the elevator doors finally slid open with a soft ding, Peter pulled James out, and they walked through the living room that was in the center of the commonfloor, where all the Avengers were allowed to mingle with each other. Peter shoved James down onto the empty couch. “Stay here.” Then he hurried off to who-knows-where.

While James sat there and twiddled his thumbs, he wasn’t paying enough attention, so he was startled when someone suddenly cleared their throat. They looked amused to see him jump up like that. James blinked a few times, and found that he had absolutely no idea who was standing there. He didn’t know anyone with a metal arm. “Uh, hi?”

The older man arched one eyebrow. “Finally done with that stupid tantrum you were throwing?”

James opened his mouth to explain that he had no idea what was going on, when Peter suddenly returned with Natalia of all people. Despite ten years having passed, she looked as beautiful, and deadly, as ever. But he’d never seen such a blank look from her directed towards himself, and he wondered what was going on. 

Peter nodded towards James. “You know him best, so I figured that you’d know if he’s an imposter or not.”

James felt vaguely insulted by that. “Hey, I’m not an imposter!”

Natalia stalked closer, then reached out to roughly grab James’ chin so that she could force him to meet her eyes. “Perhaps you are, perhaps you are not. Answer a few questions for me, and we will know the truth either way.”

James gulped, and he couldn’t help feeling like everything was just spiraling out of control. “Sure thing,” he squeaked out. “Ask away.” He knew that he was telling the truth, and the sooner he convinced his mother of that, the sooner someone would be able to try and help him figure out what the hell was going on, and how the hell he was supposed to get home.


	4. Chapter 4

James was relieved that the questions his mother asked him were all fairly easy. Of course, he didn’t know about anything that had happened since he was seventeen, but she mostly only asked him questions that had to do with his childhood. It felt like the interrogation went on forever before Natalia abruptly stood up, and slowly walked around the table they’d been sitting at.

Even though James had always instinctively known that his mother, no matter how scary she was to the bad guys, would never ever hurt him, he found himself feeling frightened anyways. It was like she’d somehow figured out how to give off an even more dangerous aura than before, and James really hoped that she believed he was who he said he was.

He was pleasantly relieved when she yanked him up out of his chair and pulled him into a tight hug. Then she leaned back, ruffled her hand through his hair, and turned to look at the man with the metal arm. “He is my James. But this whole situation is quite curious.” She turned back to James. “You answered several of my questions incorrectly.”

James furrowed his eyebrows as he tried to think back over all the things he’d been asked. He couldn’t think of any he’d gotten wrong, other than the two or three that he’d admitted to not being able to remember because he’d been too young at the time. “I don’t know what you’re talking about. And you even just said you know I’m me!”

Natalia nodded once. “Yes. There’s no denying that you are my son. Or at least some version of him. What you got wrong were just small details, and perhaps it’s from a faulty memory, or perhaps there is some other explanation. You said you were brought here by a woman named Wanda, right? What is the last thing you remember?”

James felt confused about the quick topic switches, but he did his best to keep up because he knew that his family was his best chance to get back to his own time. “I was just at her house, complaining about some personal stuff, and then everything went red, and I woke up like this in Peter’s apartment.”

“Hm.”

Before his mother could ask him anything else in that sharp voice of hers that he wasn’t used to hearing directed at himself, there was something that he had to know. “Torunn mentioned something about a funeral. Who’s was it?” From the way she’d said it, it had to be someone important. James knew that the superhero gig was a dangerous one, and he braced himself to hear the news of who had died.

Instead of answering his question though, Natalia only scowled at him. “Don’t mention that name here. It was bad enough to hear you talk about her in the past, but I cannot stand you talking about her now, as though she has any right to have any presence in this place of refuge.”

He certainly hadn’t expected anyone to ever be so hostile towards Torunn. This attitude must be the reason that she couldn’t come here. And it confused the hell out of him, because he couldn’t have ever imagined a world where Torunn was disliked by anyone other than supervillains. Then his eyes widened as he considered that. He thought about what it was specifically that he’d said before Wanda’s powers had exploded out. Hadn’t he said that he’d wished everyone could swap moral roles so that he and Torunn would have a chance of being together? Was Wanda really powerful enough to create an entire alternate universe after hearing a single teen’s annoyed ranting? It was insane, and yet…

His thoughts were interrupted by the feeling of a cold and heavy metal hand resting on his shoulder. “He was my brother.” James blinked a few times as he tried to figure out what the stranger was talking about. “Not by blood, but we were brothers. He was assassinated three months ago on the steps of the court house before he could be brought in to face his trial.” James couldn’t think of anyone he knew who’d be on trial for anything. Though if his theory about what Wanda had done was correct, then maybe it was possible after all. He waited with baited breath for this strange man to tell him who had died. “Stevie didn’t deserve what-”

James knew that the stranger was still talking, but he found himself completely zoning out. How was that even possible? His father was dead? But he’d always seemed so invincible, so untouchable. He couldn’t just be gone. And even in some crazy mixed up world where everyone was different than they were supposed to be, surely Steve would be the same, right? He was one of the most annoyingly good people that he’d ever met. How could Torunn still be a superhero if his own father wasn’t? Then again, why had he just assumed that Torunn was a hero? What if she was just as warped as everyone else?

None of this felt like it could be real. How could he possibly live in this world, where all the good in the people he loved was simply gone? He’d always been a bit of a rogue element amongst the Avengers, and even he’d always considered himself a hero. But to think that he was the best of them now was sickening, and just plain sad. 

He sank back down into the chair he’d been sitting in before. “How…?” he wasn’t even sure of what exactly he was asking. He just knew that he needed answers right now. He needed to know more about this messed up world. And then he’d figure out a way to track down Wanda and make everything right again. 

Natalia must’ve interpreted his question as being about his father’s death, and she let out a feral sounding snarl. “It was all her fault.” James almost asked who, but then he figured that the disgust in her voice had to be about Torunn somehow. He waited patiently to hear the rest of the story, even as his eyes burned from the tears that he was forcing back. “She’s always thought of herself as above the rest of us, and we were content to let her play hero for a while, since she was family. Our interactions were minimal, but amicable for the most part. Until she betrayed all of us more horribly than I ever would’ve expected from a goody two shoes like her.” So at least Torunn was still a hero after all. That didn’t make any of the rest of this make sense, though.

She didn’t say anything else, and just kept taking deep breaths. The stranger continued in a deep growl. “There was an unspoken agreement that she would stay away from us, and us from her, at least in professional settings. Despite our differences, we trusted her to at least keep her word. But then one day, she called the tower, sounding frantic. Said she was in desperate need of help. Stevie and Thor went to help her, and walked right into a trap. They were both arrested with her help. She’d helped build a prison that even super strength couldn’t break through, and she took Mjolnir away from her own father. There was going to be a trial to determine their fates. It was all a joke anyways, since we all knew what the outcome was going to be. But on the way in, some vigilante opened fire. Didn’t hurt Thor, but even Steve’s not impervious to bullets.”

James could feel himself breathing faster and faster, and he wondered if this is what it felt like to be having a panic attack. How could the great Captain America ever be a bad guy? And why would Torunn not protect him? No, he couldn’t blame Torunn for that. If the Avengers were truly villains, then it was her job to bring them to justice, and she couldn’t have known what the consequences of that would be. 

Even though he didn’t blame Torunn, he could still feel a horrible searing pain in his chest. Even if this wasn’t his world, and that hadn’t been his Captain America, it was still his father who had been killed. 

James jumped up suddenly. “I have to go. I have to try and find Wanda so that she can send me back home. To my real home, at the right age, where the world still makes sense.”

No one tried to stop him as he rushed towards the elevator, though the metal-armed stranger slipped onboard at the last second. “Is the world that you’re from really so different?”

James nodded once. “Yes.” He wasn’t sure if anything bad would happen to talk about home, but he didn’t think so. He couldn’t accidentally change the future since he’d traveled forwards and not back, and this wasn’t even the right world anyways. “The Avengers are supposed to be the good guys. They go around fighting crime and putting an end to evil alien invasions, and they save people. I just don’t understand how any of you can be anything but that.” He peered over at the stranger. “I don’t even know who you are.”

The stranger offered a very small and uncomfortable smile. “Your dad named you after me. I’m surprised he’s never talked about me before, at least. I’m James Barnes, but most people just call me Bucky.”

Even as the name was said, James realized that it did sound familiar. He’d never actually met the man before, though. In all of this stories, Steve had always said that Bucky had died back in the forties. He wondered if the Bucky of his world was still alive too, and if he could find him and bring him back. Surely that would make Steve overjoyed. “I think I’ve heard of you,” James said softly after a long pause. “But you’ve always just been a name in my bedtime stories, sorry.”

Bucky didn’t seem bothered by that. “At least he remembered me. What more could a guy ask for?”

They reached the lobby of the tower a few seconds later, and James started towards the front doors. He frowned when he realized that Bucky was following him. “What are you doing?”

“This is a dangerous world, and it isn’t the one that you’re used to. Someone’s got to make sure that you don’t get yourself killed.”

James blinked a few times, then frowned. “Earlier, all Peter had to do was give a mean look to a cab driver for a free ride, and he’s not even that intimidating looking. Shouldn’t people know just by looking at me that I’m not someone to be messed with?”

Bucky smiled, and gave James a brief pat on the back. “You’ve never really bought into the whole bad guy routine. Or you did, but you were unwilling to act on it. Love can make a guy do crazy things, you know? You never split from the family, but you made it clear that you didn’t want to be involved in illicit activities, and everyone respects your decision.”

“Wait- love? Who am I in love with?” It felt like a stupid question, since he had known he was in love with Torunn for longer than he could remember, but maybe it was someone different in this world. Why would Bucky smile about anything related to Torunn if he blamed her for Steve’s death?

Bucky’s grin widened into something mischievous looking. “Oh? I guess you didn’t meet the lucky lady in your world. Too bad, really. You make such an adorable couple.” It felt strange to hear such a big, muscular dude use the word ‘adorable’. “Her name is Katherine, but she just goes by Rin. Is that name ringing any bells?” James shook his head, and tuned out Bucky as he described the woman that James was apparently in love with. It was all just too surreal. And James knew that he’d never be able to have feelings for anyone other than Torunn, which meant that he needed to get home fast so that he wouldn’t ruin all of the relationships that belonged to the James of this world. Or would this world even continue to exist once Wanda fixed everything? It was hard to say for sure.

James summoned a cab, and slipped in, though he was startled when Bucky’s metal hand was suddenly in between the door and the car frame so that it couldn’t be shut. Bucky slipped into the vehicle, and slammed the door behind him. He tilted his head as he looked at James, clearly waiting to find out where they’d be going.

It was definitely irritating to have a babysitter. He didn’t even need a babysitter when he was seventeen, let alone now that he was an adult with pretty impressive looking abs. He leaned forward to tell the driver Wanda’s address in a quiet voice, but he got the feeling that Bucky had heard it anyways. That super soldier serum was quite the amazing creation.

James didn’t even know for sure that he’d find Wanda in the same home she’d had in his real world, but it was the only place he could think of to start, considering the fact that none of the people he’d spoken with seemed to recognize the name at all. 

It didn’t take long for them to reach their destination, and it wasn’t until James stuck his hands into his pockets that he realized he didn’t have any money on him. It was something that he should’ve thought about earlier before leaving Peter’s place. Bucky looked almost smug as he pulled out a small wad of cash, and handed over the exact change for the fare.

Then they both got out of the cab, and James took in a deep breath before knocking on the unfamiliar looking door. The place had a much gloomier feeling than when he’d last been here, and even Bucky looked a little uncomfortable in the neighborhood, which was seedy and run down.

The door opened less than an inch a moment later, and there was clearly a little gold security chain stopping anyone from shoving the door open the rest of the way. Of course, that would be completely useless against two people with super strength, but James couldn’t blame the residents of the area for feeling scared about what could possibly happen. 

The woman who was peering out at them had eyes and hair that were in the same shade of shocking green. She had a small frown on her face as she looked out at her visitors. “Who the hell are you?”

James tried to offer what he hoped was a friendly little smile. “My name is James, and I’m looking for someone who might’ve lived her before you. Her name is Wanda Maximoff, and-”

The door suddenly slammed shut, and James blinked a few times, wondering what he’d done wrong. Did he come across as a creep, showing up at a stranger’s home in search of a woman? But then a moment later the door swung open all the way. She’d only closed it to unlatch the chain. She took a step back. “Come in. You never know who’s listening.” James started to walk in, but he glanced back when he heard a very firm, “Not you. I’d have to be crazy to let one of you in here.”

Bucky scowled. “Fine. I’ll wait right outside. If anything happens to him, I’m taking it out on you.”

James shivered with some fear at the intensity in Bucky’s voice. It didn’t sound like this was the first time he’d make death threats. The green-haired woman didn’t look at all impressed by the threat, though. “Fine. Now go away.” Then she slammed the door shut on Bucky’s face, and locked it up again. She turned to face James, with her hands on her hips. “Now you are a new face. Are you with the Avengers?”

James wasn’t sure how exactly to define his relationship with the supervillains of this world. “I was born into them, but I’m not like them,” is what he finally settled on saying. 

The woman nodded once, and she seemed to be satisfied. She motioned for James to follow her, and they walked down a small hallway, and into her living room. She pointed to the couch, and James sat down. She sat in the chair across from him, and he got a strange sense of deja vu. “So. You’re James. I’m Lorna. Now do you want to tell me why you’re searching for my sister?”

James felt floored. Wanda had a sister? Since when? She had a twin brother, who was supposed to be a part of the Avengers, but he’d never heard either of them mention having another sibling, and James had always considered himself to be pretty close with Wanda. “I didn’t know she had a sister.”

Lorna narrowed her eyes. “Then how did you know to come here to ask about her? Though you did mention her having lived here, and I have absolutely no idea where you got that idea from.” She crossed her arms over her chest. “Still, if you didn’t know about me, then it’s a pretty damn big coincidence that you came here to find her.”

“I swear that this is where Wanda used to live. I’m not exactly from around here. Well I am, but I’m not. If you’re Wanda’s sister, then you must know about what she’s capable of, right?” Lorna gave a single terse nod. “Well her and I are friends, and I was complaining about certain unfair qualities of the world, and then her powers came out and the next thing I know, I’m waking up ten years later in a world where everything that I know has been flipped around. She’s probably the only person who can send me back home.”

Lorna frowned. “And I’m supposed to just believe you about that? Who’s to say that I don’t point you in the right direction, and then find out that it was a trick, and you kill her, or worse?”

James quickly shook his head. “If you’re her sister, then you must have powers too, right? I mean, if both Pietro and Wanda do, then you should too, which means that you could just read my mind and see that I’m telling the truth.”

That didn’t seem to relax Lorna at all. “I’m not like them. I take after our father instead.” James tilted his head curiously, but didn’t say anything. He just waited for what would be said next. A moment later, James watched as many different things in the room started to rise up and float around. “If it’s got metal in it, I can move it.”

James couldn’t help feeling awed by the display. While many people found him impressive because of his strength and stamina, he was nowhere near as strong as his father because he only had diluted serum in him, and he found other kinds of powers to be much more interesting. “That’s amazing,” he whispered.

Everything landed back exactly in the right place a moment later, and Lorna nodded, apparently happy with James’ praise of her power. “I know. And I also know that I can trust you.”

That was good news, but James couldn’t think of anything he’d done during their short meeting to earn that. “Thanks, but why…?”

Lorna’s shoulders slumped down. “It was about ten years ago that my brother and sister decided that they needed to go into hiding. They had suffered through horrible experiments, and there were plenty of creeps who were still eager to dig their knives in. I agreed to help them get away. Very few people knew about me or my relationship to Wanda and Pietro, because we have different mothers, and I was raised in a foster home anyways. Before they dropped off the grid for good, Wanda told me that you’d show up some day. She’s always been good at just knowing things. She didn’t tell me why you’d come or what you’d want, though. But she told me to trust you. So I will. I can’t show you the way to my sister, because at this point, even I don’t know where to find her. But I will do everything in my power to help you get home.”

James leaned forward to take one of Lorna’s hands and give it a squeeze. “Thank you so much. I don’t think I’ll ever be able to tell you how much your cooperation means to me. I really just want to go home, you know?”

Lorna smiled as she stood up. “Yeah, I know. Now you should probably get going before your pet gorilla breaks down the door. Come back as soon as you can, without any company.”

James nodded. “I will. Thank you.” Then he hurried back outside, and found Bucky patrolling around the building with a suspicious squint to his eyes. When he spotted James, he arched one eyebrow, and James shook his head. “She had no idea where to find the person I was looking for.” That was the truth, so James didn’t have to worry about lying. Bucky nodded once, and raised his arm to hail a cab. James gulped, and hoped that he really would be able to get home. He never thought that he’d miss it so much.


	5. Heroes

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Any chapter titled ‘heroes’ takes place in the normal universe where everyone is playing out their proper roles.

Torunn was still riding on the high of their victory as she returned to the tower with the rest of her extended family. Though she’d never admit it even with the most intense torture, as much as Torunn enjoyed helping people, the reason she embraced being a hero was because she loved being loved. And the fact that everyone assumed that she was just naturally some great person only made things even easier. Though it did suck when people expected her to constantly bend over backwards for them, the benefits of the hero gig outweighed all of the costs. 

It was especially nice in moments like these, when Steve gave her a pat on the back, not having to worry about pulling his hits since she was made of tougher stuff than most people, and he offered her a quiet bit of praise for her help taking down their latest enemy. It felt good, and Torunn didn’t think she’d give this feeling up for the world. 

But after changing into a pair of comfortable sweatpants and an old tee-shirt that she’d stolen from one of the guys, she realized that there was something off. She went to the common floor, where most of the other Avengers were busy celebrating on a job well done, but she couldn’t shake the feeling that something was very wrong. 

When Peter came up to her after a few minutes, he tilted his head. “Hey, what’s wrong? You look like something’s bothering you?”

Even though Peter was her best friend in the whole wide world, they didn’t see each other very often now that he was in college. It wasn’t luck that he happened to come home when there was villainy afoot; it was just a foregone conclusion that there was always some kind of unnatural disaster going on around New York. 

After a very long and awkward pause, Torunn remembered that Peter had just said something to her, and she cleared her throat while trying not to look too weird. “It’s nothing, I just-” That’s when she realized why everything seemed so strange. She couldn’t remember a time where she’d ever gotten back from any kind of mission without immediately being bombarded with the blazing presence of James Rogers. “Where’s James?”

Peter blinked a few times, then looked around, as though he hadn’t even noticed the other boy’s absence. Torunn knew that the two of them had never gotten along very well, but she’d never been able to figure out exactly why, and she knew that they were all part of a family, so they’d be there for each other in case of emergency. But it didn’t mean that Peter had to keep constant track of James. In fact, it was usually the other way around.

After looking over the room a couple of times, it was pretty obvious that James wasn’t about to spring out from behind one of the couches while shouting ‘surprise!’ Torunn knew that James had been treading a thin line ever since last year’s incident, and he couldn’t have been happy about being benched, but he’d still always seemed happy enough to support Torunn anyways. 

Now that she’d noticed his absence, it felt so conspicuous that Torunn had to wonder how it hadn’t been the first thought to cross her mind. James was like a shining star, and whenever he was around, he just seemed to bring a glow to the room that couldn’t be found in anyone else. And even though she wasn’t as close with James as she was with Peter, or some of the others around their age, she’d grown used to him after all this time, and it didn’t feel right for him to not be around. “I’m going to go check on him,” she said softly. “I know that he wanted to talk to me when we got back earlier, but there hadn’t been enough time, so maybe he’s feeling a bit sore about that.”

Peter frowned, the way he often did when Torunn mentioned talking with James. “Do you want me to come with you?”

Torunn shook her head, and offered a small smile. “I have no idea what he wants to talk about, but you being there would only make it awkward, and you’d make him clam up right away. You know, you’re going to have to tell me someday why you two don’t get along.” She kept her voice light, trying to inject a teasing tone into the air.

It didn’t seem to work though, because Peter didn’t stop frowning. “After that incident-”

“I trust him,” Torunn interrupted. “I know that James would never do anything to hurt me. If you can’t trust your own shield brothers, then who can you trust?” Peter still looked hesitant, and Torunn rolled her eyes. “Look, we both know that I can take care of myself, and no diluted super soldier strength is going to come even close to being able to take down a full blooded Asgardian. But it’s not going to come to that anyways. You trust me, so can’t you trust that I know what I’m talking about?”

Peter let out an annoyed sigh, and his shoulders slumped down. “If you’re up there for longer than an hour, I’m coming up there after you.”

If it were anyone else, the protectiveness would be irritatingly overwhelming, but this was Torunn’s best friend, and she knew that Peter only wanted what was best for her. “My parents wouldn’t have left me here with you guys if they didn’t think I’d be safe,” she told him gently. Then she leaned forward to press a light kiss to Peter’s cheek before she turned and headed towards the elevator.

She rode up to the Rogers-Romanova floor silently, though she was thinking about where she was headed. She thought of the stories that the older Avengers had shared from back in the 20-teens. Steve and Natalia had never been together romantically, so everyone had apparently been surprised when the two suddenly announced that they were sharing a floor in the tower. Just a couple months later, Natalia had made the official announcement to let everyone know that she was pregnant. To this day, Steve and Natalia remained best friends, and they both enjoyed co-parenting together. 

When the elevator door slide open, Torunn stepped out, and looked around cautiously. She hadn’t seen Natalia down at the small party, and she didn’t want to accidentally startle the spy into attacking her. It wasn’t that the older woman would actually be able to do much damage, but it always harmed the team’s morale when they turned on each other, even if it wasn’t done intentionally. Then again, an attack like that could just convince the older generation to retire sooner than they’d planned. Half of the new Avengers were fully grown adults already, and the other half were only a couple years off, so they’d be fine with watching their parents and predecessors just lay back and relax. 

There didn’t seem to be any signs of Natalia around, which was good, because it would probably embarrass James to have to talk about stuff in front of his mom anyways. Torunn walked up to James’ bedroom, and knocked politely on the door. When there was no answer, the feeling of wrongness from earlier returned full force. 

Of course she didn’t want to barge in on her teammate in the middle of any teenage activities, but she decided that the embarrassment of that potential situation was better than the alternatives. She knocked again just for good measure, but she couldn’t hear any signs of life from inside. 

It was a good thing that Tony had long ago set aside an entire fund just for repairing damages to the tower, though Torunn wasn’t really thinking about that as she kicked down the door. These doors were designed to be more durable than most, but it still wasn’t very difficult for Torunn to knock it off its hinges. 

Then she cautiously walked into the room, waiting for something that she couldn’t even put into words. But she couldn’t see James anywhere in the room. It wasn’t a small space, but James always kept his space freakishly neat, so there was nowhere for him to be hiding. Except for maybe the closet or under the bed, but in that case, why would he be hiding?

Deciding that it was better to be thorough and safe than sorry, she crouched down to peer under the bed. There were a couple of dusty looking cardboard boxes, which were not very interesting, and then she got up and went over to the closet. She flung the door open, and saw nothing but the neatly creased shirts that were hanging up, and the set of drawers pressed against the closet wall seemed completely undisturbed.

Torunn frowned, and turned to leave the room. Obviously the tower was huge, and James could be anywhere within it. But that didn’t stop the weird feeling from sticking around. “Friday-” her voice cracked, and she cleared her throat. “Friday, is James in the tower?” It would be easier to know for sure than to try and manually search every single floor.

The disembodied voice responded, “I’m afraid not. He left the tower shortly after the other Avengers. He told me not to say anything, and it didn’t seem to be a priority. And before you ask, I have no idea where he went.”

Torunn swore under her breath. It wasn’t like James was under lockdown- he’d never been arrested or anything- but it was basically an implied rule that he wasn’t supposed to leave the tower without supervision. It was a bit unfair since he was the same age as Torunn, and they were basically adults, but after last year, she couldn’t entirely blame the others for coming up with that rule.

She didn’t want to get James in trouble. He was already a troubled enough guy who had so much to worry about everyday, and Torunn couldn’t find it within herself to add to his burdens by letting everyone know he’d gone out. They’d all flip. “Friday, if anyone asks, James didn’t head out until ten minutes from now, and I went out with him.”

There was a brief pause before the AI responded. “I find this to be highly inadvisable, but if that’s what you want, I’ll do it.”

It was always hard to say for sure how well secrets with Friday would be kept. Of course Tony had an override code that gave him a higher level of access than anyone else in the tower, but beyond that, Torunn was pretty sure that Friday picked and chose her secret keeping abilities based on who she liked the most. Favoritism was easier to understand than whatever complicated algorithms had gone into programming her. Torunn may have been raised on Earth, surrounded by all kinds of technological geniuses, but she still couldn’t help finding terran tech to be just a bit unnerving. It was a sentiment that she knew her father shared, though her mother enjoyed how intelligent it made her look because of how primitive it was compared to Asgardian technology.

But she had to be satisfied in her belief that Friday would do as requested, and Torunn hurried back down to the party. She pulled Peter aside to talk to him quietly. “James is in a rough mood right now, so we’re heading out to just kinda walk around. You know, get some fresh air, buy some disgusting street hot dogs, that kind of thing.”

Peter furrowed his eyebrows, clearly worried. “Just the two of you? I really don’t think that that’s a good idea. Torunn, I know that you like to see the best in everyone, but some people just don’t have good in them.”

Maybe that was true. But it was hard to believe. Steve and Natalia were both such good people, so how could they have possibly created anyone who wasn’t at least half as good as them? And sure, James had made plenty of mistakes, but those shouldn’t be what defined him. “I think I’ve mentioned this before, but I can take care of myself. I’ll call you in a while, okay?” Then she gave Peter’s hands a gentle squeeze before hurrying off.

She left the tower before anyone else could stop and try to talk to her, though it wasn’t until she was outside that it occurred to her she was wearing lazy clothes, and no shoes. Her hair was tumbling down in a frizzy mess, and the light breeze was probably only knotting it up. She stopped to peer at her reflection in the window of a random building, and realized that this was probably for the best. She looked like some ordinary person, which meant that the odds of her being stopped for photos and autographs were slim. It would make it easier to try and track down James.

The only problem was that New York was a huge city, and she didn’t even know where to begin to look. With all the other new Avengers, she could think of at least one place just off the top of her head where each of them might go to sulk or be on their own. But she didn’t know where that place was for James. Clearly she wasn’t a very good teammate. Was it the same way with all the others? Did they just treat James like someone who was there, but never really try to make him a part of the team? Torunn felt like a horrible person. She’d even laughed about it with some of the others, jokingly saying that James followed her around like a puppy. If he’d been a solid part of their group, that teasing would be harmless, but if he’d already been feeling like he was forced to the edges of their team, it would just be cruel. 

As Torunn walked, she tried to think back to all of her most recent interactions with James. She couldn’t remember any conversations between the two of them that actually mattered, not unless she looked back several years. She’d been so busy trying to build up her reputation as a great hero, that she’d neglected anyone who hadn’t been able to keep up with her. She let everyone think that she was this amazing person, when she was actually quite horrible. She’d never purposely tried to hurt anyone, but that didn’t automatically make her a saint. And even if it had never been on purpose, she had hurt people before. 

After a while, Torunn realized that she was just walking around in circles because she actually had no idea of where to look for James. But there had to be someone… Even as she thought about it, the tiniest crumb of an idea came to her. It was something from some brief conversation that she could barely remember. James had mentioned that Pietro’s twin sister was pretty cool. That had been it, but maybe that was enough. Torunn couldn’t think of any other friends that James had outside of the Avengers, so at least it was a start. 

She quickly fished out her phone, grateful that she’d actually remembered to shove it into her pocket before leaving her room earlier, and called Pietro. He answered immediately. “Yah?”

“Hey, so this is going to seem like a really weird question, but where does your sister live?”

There was a short pause before Pietro answered, sounding as cheerful as ever. “No matter how many times you guys bug her, she’s never going to want to join the team. But it will be amusing to see how she shoots you down.” Then he rattled off an address, which Torunn forced herself to remember. “Good luck!” Then he hung up without another word. It was funny that one of the fastest people Torunn knew was also somehow one of the ones who never seemed to have enough time for anything. 

She hailed the nearest cab, and slid into the backseat, sharing the address she’d been given before she could forget it. She pulled some money out of the cramped little wallet attached to her phone case, and shoved it into the driver’s hands as soon as he pulled up at their destination. She thanked him, then hurried up to the door to knock on it. She felt bad for being a disturbance, but she was only getting more and more worried about James. 

It took longer than it should have for the door to swing open, and it revealed a young woman with hair even redder and brighter than Natalia’s, and she looked so pale and gaunt that Torunn almost felt bad for being there. Especially when she didn’t know anything about this woman, including her name. She cleared her throat, and did her best to channel her father’s pure confidence that revealed itself in every situation. “Um, hi, I’m-”

The woman let out a long sigh. “Torunn, right?” She took a step back, and gestured to the interior of the apartment. Even though this woman didn’t seem to actually want Torunn in her home, she’d offered, and Torunn was eager to get more information about James from wherever she could. They went into a cozy looking living room. Or it would be cozy if it weren’t for the fact that it looked like there had been some kind of explosion that had added signs of destruction to everything. 

“What happened in here?” Torunn asked without thinking. She looked at the couch, but was wary to sit down in case it gave way under her weight. 

The woman sighed. “I’d blame James Rogers, but it’s more my own fault for not being able to control my powers.”

Torunn tilted her head curiously. “Yeah, Pietro said something about you not wanting to join the team.” She looked around at the broken room. “Looks like you’d be a pretty helpful ally.” Then she held out one hand. “I’m sorry, this is really rude of me. I don’t even know your name.”

The woman snorted, but she accepted the handshake. “Wanda Maximoff. My greatest superpower is being able to put up with my dummy of a brother.”

When Wanda didn’t say anything else, Torunn assumed that it was her turn to speak. “So how did you know my name?”

“I’ve heard James vaguely reference you before, but just shared your name with me a couple hours ago, and the image I got of you was quite vivid. And I think I can assume why you’re here, but I’d rather hear it from your mouth.”

It felt jarring to be reminded her her current mission to find James and get him back to the tower before he got hurt, or got into serious trouble. “I’m looking for James. He ran off without telling anyone, and I’m worried about him. I’ve got a really bad feeling about this.”

Wanda nodded once. “That is about what I expected. However, I am completely wiped out, and I don’t think I can be of much help. What happened earlier was far more tiring than anything I’ve ever done before, and it felt rather unpleasant. I’m sure you can appreciate how uncomfortable it is for your powers to be outside of your own control.”

Torunn felt bad, but she had to shake her head. “I don’t really understand that feeling, because I don’t have any powers. I mean, for an Asgardian, I’m completely normal. And since I was raised here, I learned how to temper my strength since before I could even walk.”

Wanda rolled her eyes. “Yeah, yeah, whatever. I’m sure you’ve got plenty of power that you don’t know about. Your father is the lightning god, right? I don’t think he could possibly sire an unremarkable child.”

Torunn shrugged. “I couldn’t really say.” She wasn’t going to get into her entire life story, like how she’d only known her own parents for a net total of about a month. Clearly they’d thought something was wrong with her to just abandon her on Earth, no matter how often Torunn told people that it was about trust and learning other cultures, and all kinds of crap. “So you’re sure you can’t help me find James? I’m really worried about him.”

For some reason, that seemed to amuse Wanda. “So I guess that what they say is true. Absence makes the heart grow fonder. Or you don’t really know what you have until it’s gone. Or a million other cutsie little phrases that would apply.” She sank down into an armchair that had stuffing falling out through several deep gashes. “Come back in a few days. Hopefully I’ll be feeling less wiped out by then.” Torunn started to leave, since Wanda wouldn’t be able to help her right now, but the red head called out to her in a weak voice. “Wait- can’t you stay and keep me company? Even if it’s just for a few minutes?”

It’s not like Torunn was going to actually stumble across James by wandering around the city, so she sat down on the floor, not wanting to risk the questionable state of the couch. “Sure. Why don’t you tell me about yourself? I can’t believe how little I know about you considering your Pietro’s sister, and James’ friend.”

Wanda frowned and shook her head. “No, why don’t you tell me about you? Hearing stories of all your successes will help me feel better.”

That sounded like dubious science at best, but Torunn decided that there was no point in arguing about it. Instead she took a moment to think back as far as she could, and then began telling Wanda all about the Avengers, and how amazing it was to be one of them.


	6. Chapter 6

When James got back to the apartment that he apparently shared with Peter, he couldn’t help looking around it with new eyes. He couldn’t imagine that he’d been much help in the decorating department. While his own room seemed fine, the rest of the place just didn’t feel like home at all. Maybe that was just because he was so used to his old home. 

Figuring that Peter probably wasn’t going to be back for a while since it was only the middle of the day and there were still supervillain things to be doing, James relaxed, and slumped down onto the couch in the living room. This whole thing was completely insane, but he couldn’t even blame Wanda for it. This was all his own fault for not controlling his emotions. Maybe he should’ve confessed his feelings to Torunn a long time ago, and then let her react however she felt was right. It had to be better than this, right?

Though it was strangely comforting to know just how deep Torunn’s need to help went. It wasn’t like she was purposely ignoring him all those times when she headed out to fight crime. It was apparently just a central part of who she was. Even in this world, where everyone’s roles had been reversed, and Torunn had been raised by a family of villains, she’d still instinctively known the right thing to do was to be a hero. She was just such a good person. How could James ever hope to compare to that?

While he was lounging around, trying to figure out how to work the television- it had a horrible lack of any buttons, directions, labels, or remotes lying around- there was a soft knock at the door. Hoping that it was Torunn, back so that he could talk to her some more, he eagerly went over and swung the door open. He realized a moment later that in this world it was probably a dumb idea to go around opening doors without checking who was on the other side. Apparently his life growing up with the Avengers had led to him being too sheltered. 

Unfortunately, it wasn’t Torunn standing out in the hallway. It was a pretty young woman, though. She had curly brunette hair, tan skin covered in freckles, and bright blue eyes half-hidden behind a pair of glasses. She was wearing a tee-shirt, jeans, and high top sneakers. “Uh-”

Before he could say anything, the woman shoved a brown paper bag into his arms. “I picked up some wine and flowers from the store. You’re welcome for that, by the way. You know that I always get the expensive stuff.”

James blinked a few times, and he had absolutely no idea what was going on. “Um, I’m sorry, but I think that you have the wrong apartment?” He couldn’t help the way that his voice rose up at the end of that and turned his statement into a question. 

The woman paused on her way to the kitchen, and spun around. She put her hands on her hips, and frowned. “Are you kidding me right now? Are you trying to say that you’re breaking up with me?” 

James blinked a few more times as he tried to figure out what was up. Then his conversation from earlier with Bucky came back to him. He’d mentioned that James hadn’t fully embraced the villain life because he was in love. He hadn’t listened to Bucky’s description of the woman, but he couldn’t think of anything else that would explain what was happening at the moment. “I- uh, Rin?”

She arched one eyebrow. “What?”

He let out a sigh of relief at being right. It was better to know that he hadn’t just let a crazy person march into his house. “Have you talked to any of the- my family today?”

Rin narrowed her eyes. “No. Your mom called me earlier, but your mom scares me, so I didn’t want to talk to her. Why?” She seemed to notice how uncertain James looked, and she took a few steps closer to him. There was a softer look on her face as she reached out to take James’ free hand. “Hey, is everything okay?”

James gently pulled his hand away. “I’m not your James.” He cringed, knowing that now he sounded like the crazy person. “I made a mistake, but I’m not even supposed to be here right now. I’m only seventeen, and I’m not from this universe, anyways. Everything is different in the place where I’m from. Everyone is different. And I only know your name because Bucky told it to me.”

Rin crossed her arms over her chest, and tilted her head. “I guess next time your mom calls, I should probably at least try to listen. I should’ve known that she wouldn’t want to talk to me for no reason. She’s always hated me.” Then she stepped even closer to James, so he had to look down to meet her eyes. “Well, even if you’re not my James, you’re still a James, right? I’m a good cook, and we’re both hot, so why cancel our plans?”

Nothing about that seemed appropriate. “Are you serious? I just told you that I’m only seventeen. You’re an adult, and I’m still a minor. And wouldn’t that be like cheating on your James?”

Rin let out a startled laugh. “Oh my god, relax. I wasn’t planning on jumping into bed with you. I just meant that we should at least enjoy having lunch together, and appreciate the company of a fellow attractive person. I’m not a perv.”

James could feel his shoulders slump down. “Oh. I guess that’s okay then.”

Rin clapped her hands together. “Great. You set the table and pour the wine, and I’ll…” she trailed off. “Actually, why don’t you stick the wine in the fridge. It’s too expensive to be wasted on a kid who wouldn’t appreciate it. Also I wouldn’t want to break the law by providing alcohol to a minor, you know? You can put the flowers out in a nice vase, though. I did get them for you, and they’re probably not going to last until my James is back. When is that going to be, anyways?”

Everything was happening so fast. James couldn’t imagine why he’d gotten together with this woman in the first place. There was nothing particularly wrong with her; she was pretty, and she seemed understanding enough of the situation but she just wasn’t… she just wasn’t Torunn. In the end, that would be the biggest flaw James would find with any potential girlfriend. Just the fact that she wasn’t Torunn was automatically enough to turn him away from any other women.

He cleared his throat while Rin began pulling out pans and various ingredients. “Full disclosure- I’m in love with someone else.”

Rin paused for just a moment before shrugging and getting back to whatever she was planning on cooking. “That’s fine. You’re not my James, so there’s no reason for me to be jealous. Just don’t go and sleep with anyone else while you’re in his body. If you try it, I’ll kill you.” They were silent for a few minutes, and James watched in amazement as all the random things Rin had gathered up began to turn into real food. “Is it anyone I know?” she suddenly asked. 

James wasn’t sure of how connected everyone was in this world. If Torunn was a superhero though, and all the Avengers seemed to hate her, then it seemed unlikely that she was very involved in this James’ life. And she had mentioned that they hadn’t talked in years, hadn’t she? He just shrugged. “I’m not sure. It’s Torunn.”

Rin suddenly froze, and then whipped around to look at James angrily. “Are you fucking kidding me?” When she saw the startled look on James’ face, she took in a deep breath, then slowly let it out. “I’m sorry; I know that none of this is your fault, and if you’re not my James, then I can’t blame you for liking someone else. But now I can’t help thinking about who else my James might like.” Her eyes were starting to water, and she turned back to the pan to stir things around before anything could burn. “It’s always been Torunn for my James too. Did you know that? I met him in college, and I had to work pretty damn hard to seduce him. We were dating for almost two years before I found out that he was pining after that whore- after her-” she quickly amended. “I ended up confronting him about it. He said that he’d been in love with her for his whole life, which sounds like total bullshit to me. He said he never actually cheated, and I decided to trust him on that. Then he promised not to talk about her ever again. It got easier when his family decided to hate her more than they had before.”

James wasn’t sure what to do with this information. Apparently there were two universal facts of life that could never be changed. The first was that Torunn was always going to be a hero, no matter what. And the second was that James was going to always love her the most no matter what. It was crazy that those were the two consistent things. 

He stood there awkwardly as he tried to think about what to say. “I don’t think that he cheated on you. I mean, I know that myself from this world is a different person, and probably more of a jerk, but I can’t imagine myself ever being the kind of guy who would resort to being a cheater. And besides, it’s not like Torunn likes me back.”

Rin turned off the stove, then began scooping food out onto two plates that she’d pulled out of the cabinet, since James hadn’t set the table like she’d asked. “How do you know? Maybe it’s just the romantic in me, but it can’t be a coincidence that two different James’s are both madly in love with the same woman, can it? It has to mean something.”

James shrugged as he sat down at the table. “I don’t know. This whole situation has been really confusing and kinda scary. I can’t wait to just go home.” He began to eat, and immediately let out a loud groan. “Oh my god, you were right; you are a good cook. Where did you learn how to do this?”

Rin looked amused by how much James was enjoying the food. “I’m glad you like it. I’ve never seen anyone like my dishes half as much as you do. Though it’s definitely really weird that you really don’t know anything about me. I work as a chef in a five star restaurant that’s usually populated by celebrities. I would certainly hope that I know how to cook.”

James offered up a big grin. “Well, all your hard work has paid off. Um, let me see if there’s something in the fridge that we can have for dessert-”

Rin held up one hand. “Please stop talking. I know your kitchen better than you do. I know it better than my James does. I’ve always been afraid to let him get too close to the stove. In the apartment we lived in during college, I once went out to grab some forgotten ingredient. I was gone for ten minutes at the most. I came back to find a firetruck outside the building, and James apologizing for somehow setting our kitchen on fire.” She headed towards the kitchen, though she did call back over her shoulder, “But just so you know, you’re in charge of cleaning everything up!”

She came back out a few minutes later. “The best I could do was a couple of mug brownies with slightly freezer burnt vanilla ice cream. Seriously, you and Peter need to start taking better care of yourselves. How do you even survive when I’m not around? Also, I packed up the leftovers for you to put in the fridge once it’s all cooled down.”

James looked down at the mug in front of him. “Um, not to question your cooking prowess or anything, but how can you possibly make a fully cooked brownie in such a short amount of time.”

Rin rolled her eyes as she dug her spoon into her own mug. “Oh just eat it, and then you can thank me for it.”

Dubious of the level of how cooked the dessert was, James cautiously scooped into his own mug. When he pulled the spoon back out, he saw what looked like a piece from a perfect brownie, and when he stuck it into his mouth, he immediately wanted to know how to be able to make this all the time. “Alright, I was wrong to doubt you. This is the most amazing brownie I’ve ever had before.”

Rin nodded, a smug look on her face. “Yup, that’s what I thought.”

They both finished eating pretty quickly, and then chatted for a bit. It wasn’t really a hardship to talk to Rin; she was nice and seemed to understand James. Then after a little while, James scooped up all the used dishes so that he could bring them into the kitchen and dump them into the sink. He didn’t plan on sticking around in this universe for very long, so it seemed fair enough to decide to leave these for the James who was actually supposed to be here.

As he thought about that, James couldn’t help pausing where he stood. Had his universe been turned into this one, with him being the only one who remained unaffected? Or were there two universes coexisting together? And in that case, where was the James of this universe? Had he just disappeared? Was he dead? Or had he somehow wound up in the places that James was supposed to be? But if the James from here, while not necessarily evil, wasn’t a good person, then what kind of damage could he be causing? The other Avengers still had trouble trusting James after everything that had happened last year, and if the other James went around acting like a jerk, it would only make everyone hate him even more. He groaned at the thought of everything being completely ruined. 

Then he realized that there was a soft pressure on his arm, and he looked down to see that Rin was standing in front of him. She seemed concerned. “Hey, are you okay? You’ve just been kind of standing there for a few minutes. If you’re trying to get me to pity you so that you don’t have to do the dishes, it’s not going to work.”

James shook his head. “It’s not that. I’m just worried about my future back home. What if I finally get back only to find that everything’s been totally ruined.”

“That won’t happen,” Rin told him confidently. “Your world is full of superheros, right? If they’re even half as strong as they are when they’re villains here, then they’re not going to have any problem keeping your world safe from damage.” She hesitated for a moment before dropping her arm. “Hey, I have an idea of how you can get your Torunn. Talk to the one who’s here and learn everything about her that you can so that when you ask her out in your world, you can make it all super personalized, and she’ll love that you know her so well.”

That didn’t exactly sound like a great idea to James. “But what if she thinks that that makes me stalkerish? Or what if the two Torunns are very different? Most of the other people I’ve met here are a lot different than they are in my memories. And that’s another thing! Not even the past is the same as the way that I remember it. I appreciate the thought, but I don’t think that interrogating this Torunn is going to help with my Torunn. Why would you want to help me anyways?”

Rin sighed. “I don’t know. Probably because you look like my James and I love him and I just want you to be happy. Don’t try to psychoanalyze me about this or anything. We’ve only known each other for a short amount of time, but I feel like I could consider us to be friends. Wouldn’t you say the same thing?”

“I don’t usually think of people as friends after knowing them for like an hour and a half. But while I’m here, I could use all the friends I could get, and you seem like a really cool person.”

Rin tilted her head. “Alright, be honest with me. Are you even a little bit tempted to go to bed with me?”

James shook his head. “Sorry, no. I’m not saying that you’re not attractive, and you’re nice and I enjoyed talking to you. But the only person that I ever want to be with is Torunn, and if she rejects me, then I plan on growing old alone.”

“That’s what I was afraid of,” Rin whispered sadly. “You’re a lot more similar to my James than you seem to know. And if that’s how you feel, then it’s hard to believe that he feels very differently. I still don’t think he cheated on me or anything. But I just know that if Torunn were to suddenly show up and declare that she wanted to be with him, he’d dump me in an instant, even if it was just for a single night with her.” She reached up to cup the side of James’ face for a moment. “That’s the kind of love that can survive all kinds of strange voodoo dimension hopping magic.” She took a few steps back, and cleared her throat. “Um, I think that I’m just going to go now. It was really nice meeting you.”

She turned to leave, and James felt bad for disappointing her. He barely knew her, but she seemed like a good person, and he could understand why her James would want to stay away from villainy from her. She deserved better, though, than someone who was always going to be pining over a different girl. “I’m sorry. I know that this isn’t going to be much consolation, but you heard what I just said, right? If I can’t be with Torunn then I don’t plan on ever being with anyone.” He stopped for a moment to think about that. “Well, I might have like one night stands or something, but I won’t be in any relationships. So for your James to choose to be with in an actual loving relationship means that you’re really special to him. He wouldn’t have stuck around for so long if he didn’t love you.”

Rin shrugged. “So you’re saying that I’m lucky just to be a second choice?”

“No!” James quickly shook his head. “I’m saying that if you’re both happy together, then just continue to be that way. You’re the one that he’s with. He loves you.”

Rin frowned. “You’re right, that’s not really much of a consolation.” She reached up to rub at her eye, which knocked her glasses into a skewed position. “Like I said, it was nice meeting you. I hope you get home okay. Just um, if you can tell my James to give me a call when he gets back, I’d really appreciate it.” Then she left the apartment, and James wasn’t even sure how to feel about any of this.


	7. Chapter 7

James ended up lounging around and doing nothing for a while after Rin left. If the circumstances were at all different, then he would have been happy enough to be with the woman. She was beautiful, smart, a great cook, a nice person to talk to, and even though she’d come off as gruff at first, she’d actually been pretty cool. James quietly cursed Torunn for stealing his heart so thoroughly that he could never imagine giving it to anyone else. But then he reminded himself that it wasn’t even her fault, since she had no idea that he had it bad for her. He was lucky enough just to be able to get through an entire conversation with her before she had to run off and do something else. 

Maybe this was all just James’ fault. If he’d been braver, then he would have been able to confess his feelings for Torunn a long time ago. He wondered if being rejected by her would be enough to make him get over her. He really doubted that that would be the case. He sighed, and couldn’t think of anything more productive to do than mope and worry about all of his problems.

After a while, the front door to the apartment opened, and he could hear the confusion in Peter’s voice. “Hey buddy, what are you doing sitting around in the dark?” 

The lights flicked on a moment later, and James craned his head back to look at Peter. “You would have seemed pretty stupid if it turned out that you were just talking to an empty room. I might not have even been home. Or I could have been in my bedroom. Bold of you to assume that I was in here.”

Peter sat down on the couch next to James, and furrowed his eyebrows in confusion. “What are you talking about? I happen to have excellent night vision, and I could see you just sitting here.”

Night vision? That was new. Or at least different, even if it wasn’t new for this Peter. The Peter from James’ real world had no such ability, except for what the fancy tech in his newest suit could do for him. But just Peter in plain clothes shouldn’t be able to see in the dark. “God, this whole situation is so freaking weird. I just want to go home where everything actually makes sense.”

Peter reached over to pat James on the knee. “I know, buddy. I can’t even imagine how totally strange this must be for you. Though you might want to consider sticking around, if only because I am obviously much cooler than my heroic counterpart.”

“I don’t know man, he’s gotten himself tangled up in some pretty awesome messes. Anyways, if I stayed here, wouldn’t you miss your James? The one who’s actually an adult and isn’t a totally squeamish wimp?”

Peter hummed under his breath for a moment before finally answered. “I don’t know, he could be kind of a dick sometimes. It might be nice to start over again and help you grow up to be a better person.” 

James arched one eyebrow, and stared at Peter with blatant disbelief. “You can’t be serious right now. You’re all supervillains. That makes all of you dicks. I guess Torunn and I are the only ones with any conscience.” He frowned. “Well, I guess I don’t really count, since I’m not exactly a hero in this world. I guess some things never change. I wasn’t exactly a hero in my old world either.”

“What are you talking about? I thought that you said everyone’s roles were switched up, except for Torunn?”

Thinking about his real world was equal parts painful and pleasant for James. He didn’t want to let his actual past just fade away from him, but he also hated to think about somewhere that he could not go at the moment. Maybe talking about it out loud would help. He’d talked to plenty of other people before; after last year’s incident his parents and the other Avengers had all basically forced him to see a therapist if he didn’t want to be permanently kicked off the team. But it was hard to talk about all of his problems to a complete stranger. By agreeing to see someone, he was only given an indefinite leave of absence instead of having to hand in his resignation.

At least Peter, as strange as he seemed in this world, was someone who knew and cared about James, and would actually be invested in hearing about his life. So James nodded once. “I wasn’t a villain. I wasn’t working with any bad guys or anything like that. I was one of the Avengers, one of the heroes. But being raised by a group of heroes like that wasn’t exactly easy. You wouldn’t really understand, because you grew up in one of the more normal families of those in the young Avengers. Being raised by birth by a group of people dedicated to nothing but crime fighting twenty-four seven is harder than it sounds. They expect you to be just as devoted to their cause as they are, even though there’s already a million other superheroes out there who could be doing the same exact things that I could. I’m not particularly special, beyond some diluted super soldier serum from my parents.”

Peter tilted his head. “Don’t stop now, but this almost sounds like you’re trying to get into a super villain origin story.”

James immediately shook his head. “No! No, it’s nothing like that. For a while, while I wasn’t exactly happy with my situation, I was content to stay where I was because it meant being around Torunn and all my friends and family. But then last year, that’s when things changed for me. I made a few mistakes. I never had any evil intentions, but it was hard for anyone else to see it that way. Someone approached me, and made a really bizarre offer. They were planning on robbing a bank. They promised that nobody would get hurt, and that all I had to do was throw the Avengers off enough that the guy would be able to get away. From a hero’s standpoint, that sounds really really stupid, right? He offered to split the haul with me as if my entire family and extended family weren’t filthy rich already. Obviously, I wasn’t going to agree to a deal like that. I told him no way, and that if he went through with the crime, I’d help throw him into jail myself.” 

While he paused to take in a few deep breaths, trying to think of the best way to tell his story that wouldn’t make it sound like he was trying to paint himself as a victim or a villain, Peter cleared his throat. “Sorry, but I’m really not seeing where you’re going with this. It doesn’t sound like you were anything but a hero, as annoying as that makes you.”

James fidgeted with his hands, and he still found it strange to feel rough calluses that he wasn’t used to on hands that felt too large to be his own. “The problem is that I’ve always had rather selfish motivations with my heroing. I only did it to make my family proud and to have a good excuse to stick around. I didn’t do it to actually help anyone. So when it came down to it, my loyalties were with myself and my family, not with morals and doing the right thing. The guy robbed the bank, and a couple of the Avengers, including Torunn, went to stop him. They ended up capturing him after he’d already managed to kill two people. I felt horrible, but what else could I have done? Warning the adults would have been meaningless because I had no idea which bank the guy planned on robbing, or when, and they would have wondered why he’d approached me of all people with an offer like that. So it wasn’t my fault that those people died. 

“No matter what I told myself, though, I couldn’t help feeling like I was wrong, and that it actually was all my fault. I didn’t really think about what I was going to do, but I went to visit the guy in jail. I demanded to know why he’d killed anyone after promising that he wouldn’t. He said that it was my fault, because if I’d been there to convince the Avengers to back down, then he wouldn’t have had to go to such extremes to get the job done. He said a lot of other bullshit too, none of it nice or pleasant. And he was so smug that those innocent people had died. Said that it was the mark of a decent robbery when there was bloodshed, and promised that when he was out, he’d do whatever he could to make my life miserable. I have no idea why he was so fixated on me, but I was content to let him rot away in jail forever. 

“But it turns out that he wasn’t the lone wolf we’d all assumed him to be. He had a partner who was still on the outside, who helped break him out of jail before he could face his trial and be put away into a more secure facility. I was elsewhere, but Torunn was already at that police station talking with a lawyer about what she’d say during the trial, so she was able to be the first one to respond on the scene. And she’s a full-blooded Asgardian, so normally that kind of thing wouldn’t be worrying at all, because there’s so little in our world that can actually cause her harm.

“Turns out we were pretty stupid to think of her an invincible. But she hadn’t really been raised by her parents; it was more like she’d been dropped off on Earth and visited every once in a while, so even she wasn’t aware of how fallible she could be. Turns out the buddy of the bank robber was a practicing sorcerer. Not very good at it yet, but still enough to cause some serious harm. He was about to hurt several police officers, and Torunn jumped in the way because she thought that she’d be alright. But she wasn’t. She was really badly injured, with broken bones and internal bleeding, and head trauma, the whole nine yards. She’d never been hurt like that before, which meant that the pain of it must’ve hit her extra hard.

“Even while so badly injured, Torunn managed to hold up at least until some of the other Avengers arrived, and they managed to get the two criminals locked up. I found out about the whole thing a little while later. I went to visit Torunn in the hospital of the tower. She was healing pretty fast, but it was still horrific and unnatural to see her so beat up and hurt.

“When it comes to Torunn, I’ve never exactly been the best at making good decisions. And seeing her so badly hurt just brought out the absolute worst in me. I knew logically that the criminals would both be locked away for a very long time, and prison conditions aren’t exactly friendly. But that didn’t feel like justice.” He closed his eyes before finishing his story. “So I broke into the county jail, and killed them both.”

Both men sat there silently for a very long moment, while James waited to hear Peter’s reaction to that story. Maybe it had been too long and detailed, and it would have been easier to just blurt out that he was a murderer. But he wanted the context of the situation to be understood because he didn’t want Peter to think of him as a villain. It was something that many of his own family members were guilty of, even after all the time that had passed since that incident. 

Finally, Peter reached over and pulled James into a hug. It didn’t last longer than a few seconds, but it still felt nice to be hugged by a friend. “I’m not sure whether pity or laughter is more appropriate at the moment. You’ve killed more people than the James of this world. At least the rest of us have more than two deaths in our pasts, if that makes you feel any better.” He sighed. “Your family should have been proud of you for proving your ability to protect them.”

James snorted. “Pride is the last thing that they felt. They were all ashamed and disgusted. Which is so hypocritical, since even in my world, the Avengers all have their fair share of blood on their hands. They said that what I did was murder, and that it wasn’t in self defense, and that I was lucky they weren’t tossing me into jail for what I did. Ever since then, I’ve been totally sidelined. How am I ever supposed to prove that I’ve changed and can be a good hero if they won’t ever give me a chance?”

There was another moment of silence before Peter answered. “To be perfectly honest, I don’t know anything about hopping universes, and I don’t know anything other than what you’ve said about your world. No one knows for sure where our James is or if he’s okay. But maybe you really should seriously consider sticking around. No one here would judge you for your past. And if we can find a way to get our James back while keeping you too, then even better.”

It seemed like a tempting offer. To get to have his family back like how they treated him before last year. But he knew that it wouldn’t really be the same. Natalia’s cold eyes when he’d seen her in the tower were proof that even though these people were technically his family, they weren’t really his family. And James didn’t want to be stuck always competing with a different version of himself, who would be better liked and more appreciated by the occupants of this world. “Thanks, but I just want to go home. Back to my parents, who are both still alive, and to my Torunn who hasn’t gone years without speaking to me, and to everyone else I love. If I stay here, that’s the same as just hiding away. And I can’t hide from the consequences of my own actions. Doing that wouldn’t be very heroic.”

Peter nodded. “I won’t stop you from trying to get home. But I’m not sure how much help I can be in that regard either. Like I said, I’m not exactly an expert in leaping between worlds. And I don’t know anyone who is.” He stood up. “I’m going to grab a snack and then head out. Maybe you should try to get some sleep. I know it’s early, but I was emotionally drained just listening to your story, and I never had to live through that.”

“The first time you killed someone, why’d you do it?” James couldn’t help asking. He couldn’t imagine his Peter ever killing anyone. He had a very strong no killing rule that he always tried to get all of the young Avengers to go along with as well.

Peter blinked a few times, apparently surprised by the question. Then his shoulders slumped down, and his eyes stared off at something that wasn’t there. “I didn’t have any such noble reasons for what I did. A superhero was trying to stop me from escaping the scene of a crime, and they caught up to me too quickly. I could have let myself be arrested, but that was before I’d officially joined the Avengers, and I didn’t think anyone would come to rescue me. So I made the decision to kill them. That’s it. I was just a bad guy trying to get away.” He started walking in the direction of the kitchen. “Try to get some sleep,” he repeated before hurrying away.

James watched his roommate shuffle around in the kitchen for a few minutes before emerging, and then heading right out the front door of the apartment. Then James stood up, yawned, and stretched his arms up over his head. Peter was right, it was terribly exhausting to talk about the things that he had been through. Even now, James wasn’t really sure whether he was a hero or not. What he’d done weren’t exactly the actions of the good guys. 

Deciding to think about it more in the morning, because his dad had always told him that things made much more sense every time the sun rose again, James retreated to his bedroom. He changed into a pair of unfamiliar pajamas, and then curled up beneath unfamiliar blankets. He couldn’t wait to go home. And as soon as he got there, he was going to tell Torunn everything about how he felt. He had spent too long pining after her from a distance, and that wasn’t good for him. Once Torunn knew the situation, she could choose for herself how to proceed. And maybe then James would finally be able to feel at peace with himself.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the very large exposition dump. And that James spilled everything so early when it would’ve made things more mysterious to hide his past for a little while longer, but it just felt like this is when I wanted to let it all out lol.


	8. Heroes

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So you might notice that I updated the tags a little bit to add the relationship bit, but it's probably not going to be quite what you're expecting, at least not yet. But so many people have been asking about when they're going to get together that I just had to do something lol

It had been a week since the last time anyone had seen James, and only a few hours less than that since everyone thought that Torunn had last seen James. At first, she’d hoped to hide his disappearance to avoid getting him into trouble. But after three days had passed by, and she’d gone back to Wanda’s only to get zero answers still, Torunn knew that this was beyond her. And she was honestly worried about all the different terrible things that could have happened. Even if James had been benched for a while now, he was still one of the young Avengers, and therefore had many enemies. He wasn’t weak by anyone’s count, but there were plenty of people out there who were stronger. 

Of course Steve and Natalia seemed to be taking the news the worst. No matter how disappointed and ashamed they’d been after what James did last year, he was still their son, and they still loved him. Torunn didn’t think she’d ever seen Steve look so ferocious before. Like if he were to find out who had taken James, he’d just beat the man to death. But then that would be the same as what James had done last year, which would only make the captain a hypocrite.

And then there was also a small part of Torunn that couldn’t help wondering if James had just left on his own, and that was it. Friday had said that he’d gone of his own free will and asked her not to tell anyone, so it was entirely possible that he’d just chosen to leave for good. It wouldn’t be hard to blame him for something like that. Everyone had been treating him so bizarrely the past year. Some handled him with the kid gloves, some just completely ignored him, and some went out of their way to be cruel. Torunn didn’t think of herself as a coward, but if that’s what she had to put up with, then she’d be pretty tempted to just take off. But the problem was that he hadn’t said anything. If he’d at least left behind a small note to let them know that he was okay on his own, then this situation wouldn’t be nearly as frightening for everyone who cared about James. 

Even though she knew that it would be pretty pointless, Torunn decided to head out and just walk around the nearest few blocks. She didn’t know of any specific places where James might hang out, beyond Wanda’s place, and if he really had run away or been kidnapped, then there was no reason for him to be around so close to the tower anymore.

Which was why Torunn was so taken aback when she spotted a very familiar blonde head. She couldn’t help running forward, trying to get to him before he could be snatched away and this could all be revealed as some cruel prank. “James!”

He turned around as soon as his name was called, and Torunn’s eyes flew over him, trying to take in every detail. He was wearing a pair of plain jeans, and an Avengers tee-shirt that he wouldn’t normally be caught dead in, but other than that, he looked perfectly normal. There were no visible injuries on him, and his slightly sped up healing factor wouldn’t be able to hide anything major in such a short amount of time. 

Torunn pulled to an abrupt stop when she was right in front of James. “Oh my god, we were all so worried about you. Where the hell have you been? Do you have any idea of what you put us through? Your parents have been totally freaking out, and I felt so-” She cut herself off when James suddenly reached towards her face, and held it gently between his hands. He was staring at her with wide eyes, as though he were seeing a ghost. “Um, James? Is everything okay?”

“This still feels so much like a dream,” he said softly, though Torunn could tell that his voice sounded slightly deeper than usual. “When I first woke up, I thought that I was getting a second chance. But this is even better because everything is so different.”

He sounded slightly dazed, and his words had an odd slur to them, almost as if he were drunk, but not quite. “James, you’re starting to freak me out. What the hell are you talking about? And why are you touching my face?”

James seemed reluctant to do so, but he slowly removed his hands, and let them fall down by his sides. “I almost forgot what you looked like when you were younger. I never thought I’d see you again. When you didn’t go to the funeral, I was sure that any chance I ever had with you was over forever.”

“What funeral? What are you talking about? And where have you been? Please just explain things to me so that I can stop being so worried about you.”

One side of James’ mouth quirked up. “You were worried about me?”

“Of course I was! What kind of a question is that? We’re family, James. I’m always going to be worried about you.” She took a step back, starting to wonder if perhaps this was some kind of strange trap. If it was, then she didn’t want to be caught in the middle of it. She wanted to believe that James was back, and it was as simple as that, but he was acting so strange, and so unlike himself, that Torunn knew she was right to be cautious. “Look, why don’t we just go back to the tower so that everyone else can see that you’re alright. And even though you look alright, I know that it will make me feel a lot better to let Friday check you over.”

James tilted his head, and there was an almost curious look on his face. “The past feels so much further away than it actually was,” he said as if it were something deeply profound. “I’ve been doing a lot of thinking since I got here. My life was never perfect before, but I was content in the knowledge that it was the best I was ever going to do. But now I have a chance to get so much more. In this world, there is no dividing line between us the way that there was before.” He took in a deep breath, then slowly let it out. “Torunn, there’s something that I’ve never told you before. Something that I’ve been feeling for a very long time. I’m in love with you. I have been for as long as I can remember. Rin and the others never meant anything to me because I was always thinking of you.”

Torunn blinked a few times in surprise, trying to find her words. First of all, most of the things that James had just said made absolutely no sense. And second of all, a love confession felt like it was coming a bit out of nowhere. Sure, James was the one usually following Torunn around, and complimenting her on a job well done, and- okay. So maybe it wasn’t so crazy for him to have been feeling that way all along. But it still felt so sudden. And she was still concerned about everything else he’d just said. 

“Look, James, we’re friends, and warriors, and family, but I’ve never-”

Between one blink and the next, Torunn was suddenly standing in Wanda’s living room. It no longer looked like an explosion had gone off in it, which was nice for Wanda and all, but something very important had just been happening. She opened her mouth to say as much, but Wanda beat her to it. “I found James,” she announced. “But there’s something different about him. I’ll need to see him in person to know for sure, but I think he’s healthy enough. So now we can all relax.”

Torunn narrowed her eyes. “I was just with James. We were in the middle of having a very strange, but enlightening talk. You pulled me away though, and now he could be anywhere. We need to go find him. Can you bring us both back to the park the way you just brought me here? Or bring James here the same way?”

Wanda sighed. “I’ll bring us to him. I don’t have a good enough read on him at the moment, even if I do know exactly where he is now. Come on.” A moment later, they were back where Torunn had just been pulled from. 

James was still standing there, as if he’d been frozen in place, and as soon as he spotted Torunn, he looked like he was about to just burst into tears. He lunged forward to pull her into a hug that would have been quite painful to a human. “I thought that something had happened to you! Or that this had all just been a dream the whole time!”

There was a strange look on Wanda’s face, and Torunn pried herself free of James’ lethally tight grip so that she could look at the red head closer. “What’s the matter?”

Wanda nodded towards James. “You are not who you say you are.”

“You’re wrong,” James snapped quickly, as though he’d been expecting such an accusation. 

Torunn couldn’t help raising an eyebrow at the defensiveness in his tone. He had been acting and speaking very strangely. Maybe this all really was just some demented joke being played on her. Or some villain with a real knack for cruelty. She ignored James for the moment to continue speaking to Wanda. “Who is he, then?”

Wanda shrugged. “I’m not sure. In one moment, he seems just like the James that we know and care for. But in the next, he feels different. Older, perhaps. More experienced with life. Like he is James, but is not James. I don’t know how else to describe it.”

James heaved a big sigh, and his shoulders slumped down like he’d just gotten bad news. “I had hoped that there would be some way to go about all of this without too much trouble. That I could just pretend to be this James, and everything would be okay.”

“‘This James’?” Torunn couldn’t help parroting.

He nodded once. “Your friend is right, I am a James. And I did look like this when I was younger, probably about a decade ago. And I grew up in the Avengers Tower, and I fell in love with Torunn Thorsdottir, and my parents are Steve Rogers and Natalia Romanova. But there are a lot of differences between me and the James you know. There must be, because I grew up surrounded by a family mostly made of evildoers.”

That made about as much sense as anything else that James had said so far. “Do you even realize how crazy you sound right now?”

Before he could say anything to try and defend his story, Wanda spoke up. “I think that he is most likely telling the truth. It would explain the feelings that I’m getting from him. Why there’s a heavier feeling of darkness around him, and he feels older.”

Without even thinking about it, Torunn scrunched up her face. “Well, I guess it’s a relief to know that I don’t have to reject the real James. Though now I’m still worried about where he is, and why you would look like that if you’re actually older. And if you really are older, then I hope you realize how creepy it is for you to make a love confession to me. By the standards around here, I’m a year away from being an adult. And by the Asgardian standards, I’m like a hundred years away from being an adult. So ew.”

For some reason, instead of getting annoyed or offended, James grinned, and he looked happier than Torunn could ever remember seeing him before, even if it wasn’t really him. “You’re right, and I apologize. I just find it so difficult to control my thoughts when I’m around you. It’s like the entire world fades away, and the only thing I can see is you.”

Despite her declaration that it was gross of James to like her like that, she couldn’t help blushing a little bit at his words. She wondered how she would react if it was actually her James saying them. Though it was hard to imagine that, since he’d never really been the poetic type. Probably because of who he had for parents. “We should still get you back to the tower,” she finally said. “And tell everyone else about what’s going on. We wouldn’t want you to accidentally ruin James’ life just because you wanted to play at being a teenager again.” She hesitated for a moment while another question built up in her mind, until she decided that the open look on James’ face meant that it would be okay to ask. “You said that you’re from a world of villains, right? Well about a year ago, there was an incident where James did something pretty out of character, so maybe…”

“You were hoping that that was my doing? I hate to disappoint, but this is the first time that I’ve been to this world. I didn’t even realize that it was possible to jump from one to another in the first place. What did he do, anyways? It must’ve been something pretty bad for you to wish that it had secretly been someone else who did it.”

Torunn sighed, but she couldn’t really feel too disappointed because she hadn’t gotten enough time to get her hopes up. “It doesn’t really matter anymore. What happened in the past should stay in the past. Now come on, let’s get you back to the tower. Maybe if we figure out how you got here, we’ll be able to figure out how to get the real James back.”

He snorted. “Hey, I am real. No need to be so rude about it.” He didn’t start walking in the direction of the tower, though. “Like I said before, this could be a real opportunity for me to get a fresh start. To try again and have the life that I’ve always wanted for myself. Are you really going to be the one to deny me that chance?”

As a hero, Torunn loved to tout on about second chances all the time. And as James’ friend, it was definitely something that she’d needed to believe in if she ever wanted a chance to move past what he’d done. So it killed her to have to deny someone, especially James, that chance that he so desperately wanted. But… “It wouldn’t be fair to give you another chance if that would be denying someone else their first. James- my James- deserves to grow up and make mistakes and work towards whatever it is that he wants out of life. I can’t help you by hurting him.”

The look on James’ face was such a powerful combination of emotions that Torunn wasn’t sure she understood all of them. Regret, sadness, loss, understanding. And others, too. “But there’s so much that I still want out of life,” he practically whispered. “And if I go home, then I’ll lose my chance.”

Torunn didn’t want to act like the world revolved around her or anything like that, but the way that James was looking at her made it seem like the only thing he really wanted to change about his life was having her in it. Not even as a romantic interest, but just to be there, based on how he’d acted when he’d first seen her. Though if the blood on her James’ hands hadn’t been enough to drive her away, then Torunn had to seriously wonder about what he might do someday for them to stay so separated from each other. “If you’ve really been in love with me for that long, then there must be a Torunn in your world, too. Why can’t you just confess to her instead? She’s the one who you really want anyways. I can’t be the exact same as her.”

“It’s a lot different where I’m from. I never even had a chance with Torunn- with you- because you are the same as her. Maybe not identical, if only because you had very different upbringings. But I’ve been doing a lot of catching up with the news since I got here, and it’s pretty obvious that all the people who are the villains in my world are the heroes in yours, and vice versa. Except you. You’re a hero even when you come from an entire family of bad guys. I think that that says a lot about you. And it means that you are the same person as the Torunn I know.”

Torunn frowned. “I’m sorry if you don’t think things will work out between you and your Torunn. But right now we just need to focus on figuring out what exactly happened so that we can make sure everyone ends up back where they’re supposed to be, okay? And maybe if you’re nice enough, I’ll even give you some pointers about what you could say or do to get your Torunn to be more amenable to hearing your confession.”

James still didn’t start walking. “If I run off right now, then you might never figure out how to get your James back.”

Torunn narrowed her eyes. “True. But it also means that you won’t have me in your life.”

“Which would horribly suck, but I could do it. I would still be getting the chance to grow up and live my life again. The point is that you need me in order to make things right again.”

Torunn put her hands on her hips, and she couldn’t help sounding a little impatient. “Yeah, I think we’ve already covered that pretty clearly.”

James bit his lip, and seemed almost hesitant to continue, which already felt strange, even though Torunn was used to James not being quite as outspoken as this James was proving to be. “So how about we make a deal. If you agree to date me for the duration of however long it takes to restore everything to normal, then I will provide my full cooperation.”

“Are you out of your mind!? I can’t-”

“And I’m not talking about having sex,” James quickly added. “Just that we spend time together, and you let me take you on a couple of dates, and you don’t date anyone else. I’m not even asking for a kiss. I just want the chance to date you.”

Torunn frowned. “And if I say no then you’re just going to leave and refuse to cooperate?” James nodded once. “That’s not very nice of you. You’re putting me in a really awkward position. What am I even supposed to tell everyone? That I’m dating a complete stranger? Or what if they think that I actually like my James that way? Because there’s no way I can tell them that it was part of a deal, or they’ll murder you regardless of whose body you’re currently chilling out in.”

James held his hands up. “Hey, hey, relax. You can tell them whatever you want, and I’ll go along with it. I know that this is all probably pretty confusing to you, but from where I’m standing, all I can see is the chance to have what I never got the first time around. The only thing that I’ve ever wanted more than anything else in the entire world.”

“I’m not just some thing that you can own, you know. I’m an actual person with thoughts and feelings and everything.”

“I know.”

Torunn sighed. If only her James knew the lengths she was willing to go to in order to get him home safe and sound. She’d have to remind him of it someday. It had been too long since she’d last said something as simple as that they were friends, or that she did enjoy spending time with him. But she could only do any of that if she agreed to this James’ deal. She could easily believe that he came from a world where he was raised by villains instead of heroes. “Fine. But you have to agree to at least give me, and everyone else, a few days to get used to you before we start dating. And I’m not going to kiss you no matter how much you beg.”

The huge grin on James’ face made Torunn wonder how she could really be making the wrong choice here if it was going to make someone truly feel that happy. Then her face went dark red when Wanda cleared her throat. “So am I taking you both back to the tower now?”

Torunn nodded, feeling embarrassed that she’d completely forgotten about the other woman’s presence. “Yes, please.” Then she blinked, and a moment later she was home.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I think it's realistic that the Other James would be a bit of a creep, because he's grown up in a very different world than the normal James has


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Who has a very inconsistent update schedule that shouldn't even be considered a 'schedule' but hopes that people won't be too mad? Certainly not me haha

As he was woken up by the sound of someone pounding frantically on his bedroom door, for just a moment, James was sure that he was going to open his eyes and find himself in his room in the Avengers tower, and that everyone would walk around him like he was made of glass, but at least everything would be perfectly normal. And he could usually get Torunn to spend what little free time she had with him, as long as he played up the pity and loneliness cards.

But as soon as he opened his eyes, the entire fantasy was ruined, simply by the existence of the room he was in. The apartment that this world’s James shared with this world’s Peter. He groaned, and wanted to roll over and go back to sleep so that he could entertain himself with more dreams about the universe that he’d accidentally left behind.

Unfortunately for him, whoever was at his door seemed pretty insistent on him waking up, because the knocking only got louder and louder the longer that James ignored it. He finally let out a loud groan of frustration, then got up and padded over to the door in just his underwear. Whoever was bothering him so early in the morning didn’t deserve to see him actually put any effort into his appearance.

He swung the door open, and furrowed his eyebrows at the sight of Peter standing there in his suit. But it wasn’t the familiar red and blue Spiderman suit that James was used to. Instead it was mostly dark gray, with blood red piping. If it weren’t for the fact that the cowl was hanging down the top of his back, revealing Peter’s face, James would think that it was some kind of imposter standing in front of him. He reached up to rub at his eyes, just in case he was hallucinating the dark suit, but that didn’t accomplish anything.

“What do you want so early in the morning?” He couldn’t keep the annoyed tone out of his voice.

Peter didn’t even bother to look apologetic for waking James up like that. “Look, I get that you’re not really in the game, on either side really, but we’ve got a bit of a major problem right now, and we need all the bodies on the ground that we can get.”

It took a few seconds for James’ sleepy brain to actually absorb what Peter was saying, and then he frowned. “There’s got to be hundreds of supers just in this city alone. Why the hell would you need me when my only ‘superpower’ is to heal slightly faster and be slightly stronger than the average person?”

Peter shrugged. “I don’t know, man. Every single bit helps.” His eyes ran up and down James’ whole body in a quick and assessing manner. “You might want to put on some clothes first. Since when do you sleep practically in the nude?”

“How often do you watch me sleep to even be in the position to ask me something like that?”

Peter just rolled his eyes like that was the most ridiculous thing he’d ever heard before. “We’ve been roommates for a while, and we’re basically brothers from before that. Now get dressed unless you think you can use your great power of intimidating the other side into giving up.”

James had started to turn around to head to his dresser, but he paused when he realized just what Peter was asking of him. “And by the other side, I’m assuming that you mean… the superheroes?”

“You said that they’re all just the people who were villains in your world, so you shouldn’t have any problem finding something within yourself that really wants to kick their asses. But no, in this case, we’re not fighting them. In fact, as far as I know, they’re even willing to work together, on a very limited basis.”

James’ eyes shot up as he snatched the first shirt and pair of jeans he saw, and quickly pulled them on while Peter continued to stand right in the doorway to the room. “Are you saying that there is something happening out there right now that’s so dangerous it poses a threat to heroes and villains to the point where it requires them to team up? How is that even possible? And why would I want to go anywhere near something so dangerous?”

Peter snorted. “Maybe because your girlfriend is going to be there heroically risking her life, and it would probably make a pretty good impression on her if she could see you doing the same. And I’m sure she’d really appreciate it if you acted as a barrier between her and your mom.”

For a moment, James was confused about who his ‘girlfriend’ was supposed to be. Rin? But she wasn’t a super, and was in fact the entire reason that this world’s James- he cut off his own thoughts with a slight frown as he finished getting dressed. It was way too confusing to be constantly referring to the James of this world by his own name. Before he could forget about the brilliant idea that had just come to him, he had to speak out loud. “I think that from now on, I’m going to refer to the James who’s supposed to be in this universe as Jim.”

Peter blinked a few times, and then arched one eyebrow. “Really? And you’re just expecting all of us to just go along with that?” He heaved out an overly dramatic sigh. “Oh the things we do for our friends.” Then he saw that James had finished jamming his feet into a pair of sneakers, and he rushed over to snag James’ arm and yank him to the front door of their apartment. “Come on, come on! We’re already going to get there so much later than everyone else, because apparently you’re incapable of answering your phone even during emergencies.”

“I was asleep,” James grumbled. “Normal people like to get some sleep at night. It’s not my fault that your freaky spider powers let you run around all day and night without even getting tired.”

As they rushed out of the apartment, and surprisingly enough grabbed a cab instead of just letting Peter swing them over to their destination, Peter turned to give James a curious look. “You know, the scientist in me is actually starting to get freakishly curious, while the friend in me is starting to get more than a little bit concerned. You talk like your one of the weaker ones to be in our generation of supers, but that shouldn’t be true at all. James- Jim, I mean- he could stay up for a week straight with barely any consequences, and when we were younger, you could tussle with your dad, and even beat him a few times. You even defeated Torunn once or twice, and she’s a full blooded Asgardian.”

That couldn’t all be true, could it? Sure, Peter apparently had the ability to see in the dark here when he couldn’t in James’ world, but that didn’t automatically mean that all of their powers varied in ability and strength between the two universes, did it? “But I’ve always been one of the weakest of the young Avengers. And I have never been able to beat Torunn in a fight. And it can’t just be a ‘you get stronger once you’re older’ thing, since you said that I could go toe to toe with my dad when you were younger. I have sparred with him a few times, but I always made him promise not to go easy on me, and he always kicked my ass, while still definitely going at least a little bit easy on me.”

Peter hummed under his breath as he took in that new information, but there wasn’t really time for him to sit around pondering it too long, because eventually the cab screeched to a stop, and Peter threw a few dollars at the driver while tugging James out. James’ eyes widened at the several buildings lying in ruins, with rubble scattered everywhere. He didn’t blame the cab driver for making an illegal u-turn and booking it out of there.

But even more shocking to see than the damaged property was the sheer number of people standing around. He recognized some of the costumes, which barely had any alterations from their counterparts’, but there were others that he couldn’t place at all without being able to see the faces beneath the masks. “Everyone here is planning on working together? How are they going to even begin to strategize? There’s just too many. I don’t get what we’re supposed to be doing together. And I really don’t get how you expect me to be able to help at all.”

Instead of actually answering him like a decent person would, Peter just grabbed James’ arm, and dragged him along with him. They made their way over to one of the smaller groups that had formed, and he recognized his mother and Bucky, and a couple of people who could’ve been the young Avengers all grown up, though it was hard to say for sure. 

Natalia didn’t lean forward to pull him into a hug, or offer any kind of emotional response to his presence other than a slight frown at the clothes that he was wearing. “Really? What happened to the suit Stark made you? I know you said you wouldn’t need it, but at least then you wouldn’t stand out so much. Someone’s probably going to mistake you for a civilian and try to get you out of here.”

James was pretty sure that if that were to happen, he wouldn’t do a single thing to stop it. It wasn’t like he was a coward or anything, but working alongside this cold version of his mother, fighting against something that he still hadn’t been told anything about, when he knew that he didn’t really have any strengths to add to all the amazing things that the other supers could do, all added up to someone who really shouldn’t be right in that spot at the moment. But he wasn’t going to just wander off without being told to leave, because he did have at least some sense of honor and decency. “So what exactly is it that we’re going up against here? Peter was so eager to just bring me here without my consent that he forgot to mention literally anything about the situation.”

Natalia’s eyes flicked over to Peter, and though it was hard to read this Natalia’s expressions, even James could see that she was displeased with the man. “Did he?” she murmured softly. Then she focused her attention back on James. “We’re not entirely sure what our enemy is, but we know that they plan on destroying everyone on this world, and we obviously will not stand for such a thing. It doesn’t matter who is good or evil once we are all dead, so that is why we plan on setting aside our differences, at least for this one foe. They haven’t arrived here yet, but-”

“Then what the hell happened to those buildings?” James interrupted. He regretted it a moment later when he saw the way Natalia narrowed her eyes, but he didn’t apologize. It’s not like he frequently went around being rude to his own parents, but he didn’t want Natalia to think of him as a total pushover just because he was raised from the opposite sort of family as Jim was.

She looked over at the fallen buildings, and then looked back at James. “An alliance between so many people, many of whom are enemies or loners or wimps, makes for a rather delicate operation. And our first interactions were not quite so delicate. There are many gathered here right now who are not fond of the idea of working together, but they understand that it is for the greater good, which is why they are willing to go along with this. There are others who were unable to see past our differences, and decided to make their dissatisfaction with the situation quite obvious.”

So whoever it was that they were up against was so dangerous that all the supers needed to work together, but there were at least a few who couldn’t stand the idea of an alliance, and a fight had broken out. It was probably one of the Avengers who’d been involved in the battle that resulted in so many destroyed buildings. It was a good thing that Tony had enough money to constantly patch up the damage that everyone else caused. Not that money would matter much if everyone didn’t figure out how to work together in time to stop the approaching danger. And not that James even knew for sure if this Tony was just as rich as the Tony that James knew. Though he probably was, since the Avengers tower very clearly belonged to him even in this world. 

James’ shoulders slumped down as all the urgency of the situation seemed to bleed away. “So you’re saying that Peter dragged me out of bed at what felt like the middle of the night just to bring me to the negotiation talks? From the way he was going on, I thought that the world was actively going about ending itself today.”

Peter shrugged, though he didn’t look embarrassed about ruining James’ beauty sleep, or about nearly giving him a heart attack. “So far the only thing that everyone seems to have agreed on is the fact that everyone needs to be present before the talks can really begin in earnest. This is all about a lot more than a single fight. We need to all learn how to work together, and move together as a cohesive single unit, and we need to make sure that everyone is trained to the highest level of combat that they could possibly get to in a limited amount of time. So everyone wants to know who they’re going to be working with. I didn’t think you’d want to chicken out of the fight, which is why you needed to get here.”

James groaned. “This is going to be completely impossible. If the heroes of this world are anything like they were in mine, they’re all completely content with working by themselves all the time, and don’t play nice with others at all. And what are you going to do in the meantime? In between all the training and team exercises and such, are there going to be any rules against doing illegal things? And if there was such a rule in place, would any of the villains actually obey it?” 

Bucky had been standing there silently the entire conversation, so James somehow almost forgot about the metal armed man until he spoke up. “That’s the point of these talks. To figure out the answers to those questions.” He hesitated for a moment before adding, “And believe it or not, we are all capable of keeping our hands in our own pockets for a couple of months. We’ve got plenty of capital built up to keep us living the way we’re comfortable with without stealing anymore.”

“Then why the hell do any of you guys still steal stuff?”

Natalia snorted. “As if it were ever about the money. Even when the Avengers first came together, most of us were already independently wealthy. And it helped that we got the Shield Family backing us up. They like that our crimes are big and bold and in the open, because it means everyone pays a lot less attention to all of the things going on behind the scenes and within the government and such.”

It hadn’t even occurred to James before that even Shield would be oppositely aligned in this world. Did that mean that Hydra were all good guys? But how could they be if they were all nazis? Was it only supers who were switched up or was everyone? Did the nazis help liberate Jews during WWII, or was their role the same? Or was there even a world war? James had so many questions about the history of this world, though he knew that right now wasn’t the time to be asking them. 

Right now, the only important thing was figuring out how the hell they were actually going to pull off such a massive alliance. He glanced down at his watch, and confirmed that it was only nine in the morning. Everyone couldn’t have been gathered for more than a couple of hours and they’d already managed to completely destroy three or four buildings- it was hard to say the exact amount when most of the rubble had mixed together on the ground. How did they possibly think that they would survive working together for however long it was until this unknown enemy arrived? Even a few days seemed like longer than anyone would be able to tolerate.

Peter’s face suddenly lit up, and he grinned. “I just got a great idea!”

“Don’t let it get to your head. It probably won’t happen very often again in your lifetime,” Natalia said with an almost fond tone.

Peter rolled his eyes and ignored her as he looked at James. “While we were walking over here, you were worrying about how everyone would possibly be able to organize themselves enough to be able to get through a battle, right? Like to stop them from all crashing into each other and being totally useless. And you said that your powers are weak sauce compared to some of the others around here. Dude, your dad was one of the best strategizers that I’ve ever met before, and he always managed to pull his team through battle after battle, mostly unscathed. Maybe you could do the same thing!”

Even while Peter was still talking, James had already started shaking his head. “No, no, no, I don’t think that that’s a good idea at all. Do you even realize that I’m technically still just a kid? And I’ve never paid enough attention during the few battles I’ve been in to actually know how to come up with a solid plan of attack. And of course I hope to get home as soon as possible, and you shouldn’t pin your plans on the guy who might not be here by the time this mysterious enemy rolls around. It sucks that my dad isn’t around to make plans, but there have to be others out there who are just as good. I know that whenever it was the young Avengers by ourselves, it was always…” he trailed off as an idea occurred to him, and he thought that it was way better than Peter’s idea. “Torunn. She’s always been able to lead the young Avengers effortlessly.”

Natalia immediately stiffened up, and Bucky frowned. “I don’t think that that’s a good idea. There’s too much bad blood for anyone to want to listen.”

James quickly nodded. “That’s exactly why she’s the perfect person for the job! Not only do I have complete confidence in her ability to lead a team, even if it is a team as large as this one, but neither side really trusts her, right? The heroes are always going to think that she’s still connected to the villains, and the villains hate her for going off and becoming a hero. Neither side fully trusts her, but she also does have connections on both sides. It makes her probably one of the most neutral parties that you’re going to be able to get. She has the least motivation to screw over any one side. And again, I already know that she is a brilliant tactician.” And having her leading the charge would offer the additional benefit of potentially mending things between Torunn and the Avengers. James didn’t plan on sticking around here for very long, but he knew that if Jim was anything like him, he’d be happiest being able to have both his family and the woman he loved. 

Natalia still looked ready to completely reject the idea. James didn’t entirely blame her, since despite their relationship being that of friends only, Steve had been the father of her child, and being friends was no small feat to begin with. But Torunn wasn’t entirely to blame for what had happened. If Steve had just chosen to be a good guy instead, he would never have been arrested. And it’s not like Torunn had been the one to shoot Steve. She was a hero, and she loved her family, so she wouldn’t want them dead even if she did want them to face justice for their crimes.

Strangely enough, Bucky didn’t look as outraged by the idea of following Torunn’s lead for this battle. He’d been Steve’s best friend, and the loss had to have hurt him just as much as it hurt Natalia, if not more so. But maybe it was easier for him to recognize that there were larger things at stake than the feelings of a few people. “I think James is right. She has always taken after her father in being able to lead her people to victory. Does anyone know how to get into contact with her?”

“You mean she’s not already here?” James couldn’t keep the surprise out of his voice. Peter had said that they needed as many bodies on the ground as they could get, which apparently meant that they were desperate enough to recruit James despite his lack of powerful abilities, but no one had called Torunn, when it was obvious that she’d be immediately willing to help out? And Peter had implied that Torunn would be here, which was supposed to be a reason for James to want to be here as well.

Peter frowned, and pulled James aside so that they could speak in low voices and hopefully not be overheard. “She’s kind of a lone wolf when it comes to her work. None of the Avengers would dare to call her without getting your mom’s permission first, because she’s terrifying when she’s angry. And even though she occasionally teams up with the other heroes, they don’t really go out of their way to work with her, because like you said, they don’t really trust her. But I’ll call her now. We both know she’d be eager to help. It was a good idea for you to suggest her. I’m just surprised that your mom hasn’t murdered Bucky for going along with it.” He shrugged. “Things just are the way that they are. It’s so strange that you don’t know anything about our lives here.” He patted one of James’ shoulders. “I’m sure Torunn will either appreciate the fact that you nominated her, or despise you for life for putting her into that position. Either way she’ll still help us.” James just gulped. He hadn’t even considered the thought that Torunn would hate him for forcing her into a tricky balancing act between the heroes and villains. He just hoped she wouldn’t be too mad.


	10. Chapter 10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Felt half asleep while writing this, so I apologize if anything sounds weird or clunky or nonsensical. Just let me know and I'll do my best to fix any problems that might be there.

James felt like he’d been waiting around anxiously for hours by the time Torunn finally showed up. She was wearing normal civilian clothes, just like James was, which meant that they both stood out against the crowd together. He wondered if everyone had always looked so ridiculous strutting around in their various spandex and metal uniforms. 

Then he wasn’t able to think of anything else as Torunn looked around the large arena of supers, and after a moment, began walking right towards him. His hands were sweating, and he wondered if he would ever not be made into a fool just by Torunn’s mere presence. Though he felt a little hurt when she ended up walking right past him, and when he turned around, he saw her stand in front of Peter. Which made sense, since Peter had been the one to call her here. 

She talked to him quietly for a few minutes before Peter pointed in James’ direction, and Torunn glanced back over her shoulder, one eyebrow arched up. She turned back to Peter to say something else, and then walked over to James until she was standing right in front of him. She looked as beautiful as ever, and James couldn’t help questioning whether he’d ever get the chance to get close with his own Torunn. 

“James. I’m sorry for my abrupt departure before, but I felt it was necessary to create some distance between us. Peter said that we’re all calling the real James Jim now, right?” James nodded once, and she continued. “Jim and I were very close when we were younger, but that was many years ago, and things are much more complicated now.” She sighed. “And things have been very rough between us ever since your father-”

No matter what Natalia or any of the other Avengers said, James knew it wasn’t fair to let Torunn carry this burden all by herself. He reached out to grab her shoulders. “That wasn’t your fault, okay? You were trying to do the right thing by putting bad guys in jail. You didn’t ask for him to be killed, and I know that you must’ve cared about him here just as much as you do where I’m from. You can’t let everyone blame you for his death.”

Torunn blinked a few times, and then took a step back, so James let his arms drop back to his sides. “But you blamed me too, didn’t you? Why else would you suddenly cut off all contact with me? To the point where you wouldn’t even attend your own father’s funeral just because you heard that I’d be there? I didn’t even go, James. I couldn’t go! I wanted to but I couldn’t because I knew that you and the other Avengers would be there, despising me for making them lose their leader, and I-”

“Stop! It’s not my fault if you felt too afraid to be able to attend the funeral, that was Jim! Not me. I don’t even know how you could mix us up like that. I’m a whole different person than him.”

Torunn shrugged. “Not really. I mean, you look identical to him, so I’d have to be at least a little bit crazy to look at you and not make a single mistake about who you are. And I know you don’t really know very much about your counterpart, but before your father’s death, he was always trying to figure out ways to convince the Avengers that I deserved to remain a part of their family. And now here you are, offering me up to be in charge of this whole shindig because you think it’s a way to try and get everyone to like me, right?”

James’ face flushed pink. “Maybe partially. But I also suggested you because I really do think that you’re the right person for the job. Who else could have both the trust and distrust on both ends of the scale?”

Torunn shrugged. “I’d say that you’re reasoning makes even less sense than usual, but that would imply that you ever say anything that makes sense.” One corner of her mouth tilted up into a little smile. “Every time I think that things are going to happen in exactly the way I expect, they don’t. And I suspect that you’re almost always the cause of things happening differently than they should.” At James’ slightly worried look, her smile grew a bit more. “That’s a good thing, James. We weren’t close for all those years for no reason. I enjoy the constant surprises that you bring into my life.”

Even though he knew that now really wasn’t the time to be worrying about it, he couldn’t help asking her, “So you don’t care about the fact that I’m not a hero? Or that Jim isn’t a hero, anyways. I’m technically one of the young Avengers, but I’m on a bit of a forced leave of absence at the moment.”

Torunn shrugged again. “Who am I to judge you for something like…” she trailed off as a familiarly costumed man walked over to them. James quickly recognized the only slightly modified version of Dr. Doom’s usual costume? His cape was a lighter green, and his mask didn’t look as unfriendly, but it was undoubtedly him. James’ first reaction was to throw a punch, but he was able to take a few seconds and remind himself of the fact that the man was a hero in this world. He wasn’t sure why Torunn looked so upset to see him though. “I didn’t think you’d want to be seen with me,” she said quietly. 

Dr. Doom’s shoulders slumped down. “Right in this moment, our moral compasses don’t need to be entirely aligned. All of us are working together for the common good of not watching the entire world be destroyed around us, so it doesn’t really matter whether we’re seen fraternizing or not.”

“It’s not just that. Aren’t you worried that people might figure out your secret identity?”

The man shrugged. “To be honest, I don’t think that secret identities are the most important thing going on at the moment. There are so many greater problems, and we all just need to set aside our differences and work together.” He reached out to take one of Torunn’s hands, and when she just let him despite the fact that she was strong enough to easily tug herself away, James couldn’t help feeling something unpleasant swirl around in his stomach. “I’ve taken the time to think about what happened between us, and I wanted to apologize. You’re right, it would be unfair of me to judge you so much just based on your family. And you haven’t even been seen with them in a while anyways. Torunn, or Lightning, or whatever you want to be called, I still love you so much.”

For a moment, James could feel his heart break and he was sure that Torunn was going to run off with the scumbag and live happily ever after with him. But then she gently removed her hand from his, and shook her head once. “Now isn’t the time to be focusing on something as petty as romantic entanglements. We have more important matters at hand.”

It didn’t seem like Dr. Doom was quite so ready to let go of their relationship, and James didn’t even want to know how that had come about. He couldn’t wait to get home and tell his Torunn about the fact that she’d dated Dr. Doom. She probably wouldn’t really believe him, but the look on her face in response to the announcement was bound to be hilarious. 

While he was lost in thought, James didn’t even notice Torunn grabbing Dr. Doom’s arm and dragging him off to talk in private. It was tempting to follow after them and listen in on whatever they were talking about, but he decided that it wasn’t his right to know about everything that had to do with Torunn. He waited anxiously for her to come back, and a few minutes later, she was there. 

“So just out of curiosity, you wouldn’t happen to know of any way to actually catch the attention of everyone here at once, would you? Because I got my dad’s gift for being able to talk loudly, but I don’t think that even he could talk loudly enough to be heard over this rabble. I can only imagine what it must’ve sounded like when those buildings came down on top of everyone trying to yell to be heard over each other.”

James smiled. “At least it isn’t as bad as the common floor of the tower when everyone’s eating and fighting over what movie to watch.”

Torunn pretended to shudder. “Oh the horror. There are definitely some things about that life that I don’t miss.” She laughed, and even though it wasn’t as loud and boisterous as James knew it could be, he still felt satisfied to hear it. “So? Any idea?”

He shook his head. “Sorry, but I’m not really the ideas guy. Maybe someone else could help?”

That brought a small scowl onto Torunn’s face, all traces of the laughter completely gone. “To be honest, I’m really not sure that having me in charge of everything is such a good idea. I know that I can lead a team, but my only experience is with a small team of five or six people at the most, not hundreds of them. And I don’t have anyone out here who actually trusts me or believes in me. There’s got to be a better person for the job.”

James arched one eyebrow. “Are my ears deceiving me, or is Torunn Thorsdottir acting like a quitter right now? Last time I checked, you were supposed to be fearless. And now you’re telling me that it isn’t the threat against all of humanity that has your knees shaking, but the idea of having to try and work together with two groups of people?”

Torunn crossed her arms over her chest. “I’m not a coward, James,” she told him with a chilled voice. “I don’t always understand myself entirely, but I know that much. But like you said, there’s a threat against all of humanity. Now isn’t the time to try mending fences, now is the time to get whoever is most capable of stitching two very opposing groups of people together. I can’t be that person, because nobody here believes that I can be, regardless of how qualified I might be for the job.”

“I believe in you,” James told her earnestly. “And Peter believes in you. And bizarrely enough Dr. Doom seems to believe in you. And there’s got to be others to, who you’ve worked with before or rescued or helped out or anything, who you’ve done anything at all to prove that you are worth believing in. And maybe you’re at a disadvantage here; I get that, I really do. The villains don’t trust you because you’re a hero, and the heroes don’t trust you because you’re from a family of villains. But it doesn’t matter whether they trust you personally. Like Doom said, it’s not a matter of moral compasses right now, so much as it is a matter of everyone having the same goal at the moment. All they need to do is trust in the fact that you don’t want to witness the end of the world. And they can and will do that, I promise.”

Torunn sighed. “I still don’t think this is a great idea. Clearly the reason that nobody invited me in the first place is because they didn’t want me around. They don’t need me here. They can do all of this saving the world business on their own.”

Maybe there were more major differences between his Torunn and this one than he’d originally thought. He’d never heard his Torunn sound so unsure of herself before. Or maybe it’s just that they’d never been close enough for her to be willing to share something like that. Either way, it opened his eyes to a new side of her. And suddenly he knew, in a way that he’d never really thought about before, that Torunn wasn’t perfect. She was a hero, and a good person, a good friend, a good leader, a positive role model. But she wasn’t flawless. And it was unfair of James to constantly put her up on a pedestal and expect perfection from her. Maybe part of the reason they’d never gotten closer was because she didn’t want to let him down. Or maybe she’d just found it annoying that he always thought of her as an ideal person.

He knew that whatever thoughts were going through Torunn’s mind right now weren’t going to banished just by a few words, but he couldn’t just say nothing. “I’m sorry,” he blurted out.

Torunn looked just as surprised as James was by the sudden apology. “For what?” 

“I had this whole big picture in my mind of how things were going to go. You’d come here, and you’d take charge, and everyone would listen for no other reason than that they know you’re the most likely to be able to lead them strongly. That they’d see how perfect you are, and immediately get over themselves and their problems with you. But I was wrong to think that. You aren’t perfect.”

Torunn narrowed her eyes, and put her hands on her hips. “Gee, thanks.”

He quickly shook his head. “I’m not saying it like it’s a bad thing! It’s actually really good as far as I’m concerned. It makes you more human, you know? I mean, obviously you’re one hundred percent Asgardian in terms of your biology, but you were raised on Earth with a gaggle of humans, and you’re a lot more like us than you are like your biological family. And I think that that’s a really good thing. I think that maybe your imperfections are exactly why you are the best person for the job. You have flaws and you know it, which means that you won’t be looking down on everyone else the entire time, and you’ll be able to help them find their flaws too, so that they can work on them and improve. I know it must be a bit frightening to think of the fact that a lot of people are going to be relying on you very soon, but I know that you can do it. It’s okay if you don’t know that about yourself yet, as long as you trust me. Do you?”

She frowned. “You’re the one who just yelled at me for mistaking you for Jim, and now you want me to blindly trust you even though I technically don’t even know you?” She didn’t even wait for an answer before she started laughing, and this time it was the amazingly loud and happy laughter that James remembered. “Oh gods, this is too good. Fine, fine, I guess I’ll just have to trust you on this. But if I find out you’ve led me astray, I’ll be very disappointed in you.” She wagged one finger at him, but there was too much mirth still on her face to take it seriously. Then she cracked her knuckles and neck, as though she were preparing for battle. “Alright, I can do this,” she seemed to say more to herself than anyone else. “I won’t let this world be conquered. I can’t let it. My father loves this planet and he’d be so disappointed in me,” she added with another small laugh.

James grinned, and reached out to pat her shoulder. “You’re right, you can do this. Now go out there and prove to everyone why you deserve to be here.”

She nodded, and there was a look of determination on her face as she started to walk away. But then she paused after a few steps to look back at James. “I still haven’t figured out how to talk over all of them,” she said sheepishly.

James couldn’t help laughing at the look on her face. “I’m sure there’s someone in this monstrous crowd that can help us. Though I’m sure you’ll have to do better than just a normal bullhorn.”

Torunn suddenly ran back towards James, and threw herself straight at him. He managed to open his arms and catch her into a hug just out of reflexes alone. “Thanks, James! When you do get back to your own world, and I just know that you’ll figure out a way, make sure to tell your Torunn everything you just told me. I have the feeling that it’s something she really needs to hear.”

Selfishly, James wanted to just keep holding onto her forever, because she felt so right in his arms. But he knew that there were more important things, so he reluctantly let her go, and she pressed a quick kiss to his cheek before hurrying off. He thought he was going to explode from happiness. 

Once he lost sight of her in the crowd, which really didn’t take very long at all considering how many people were around, he turned to try and seek out Peter again. He started walking, and almost crashed right into someone. He opened his mouth to apologize, but then he realized that he recognized the bright green hair, and he blinked a few times in surprise. “Lorna? What are you doing here? I thought you-?”

She grabbed his arm and started pulling him towards the edge of the large crowd. “We need to talk. Important information stuff.” She waved her hand like ‘important information stuff’ was completely inconsequential. “You’re gonna want to hear about this.” She informed him coolly brought him away from the massive gathering of supers. “I promise I’d do everything in my power to help you get home, right? And I’m going to do just that.”


	11. Chapter 11

James hoped that no one needed him for anything important as Lorna dragged him further and further away from the crowd of supers. Not that there’s any reason that they would need him, since it would probably be a while before any kind of organization occurred, let alone before a plan could be made. And he was sure that Torunn could handle this on her own. He felt good about the pep talk he’d given her, even though he knew that she’d have been more than capable of doing this even if he hadn’t said a single thing to her. 

After a while, he couldn’t help feeling grateful that he was a bit more durable than the average human being, because it seemed as though Lorna was intent on taking him halfway across the city at least before she could tell him about whatever it was that was so important. Not that he blamed her for wanting to get away from the crowd. It was a lot to handle even for James, and he’d grown up constantly surrounded by crowds of boisterous supers. And Lorna seemed eager to keep her entire family, obviously including herself, a secret from as many people as possible. 

It felt like forever passed before they couldn’t hear or see any sign of the massive crowd, and there were civilians strolling around on the sidewalks and cars jamming the streets, and everything looked perfectly normal. Lorna pulled James into a little coffee shop on the corner of some street that he hadn’t been paying enough attention to to catch the name of, and she shoved him down into a corner booth. Even though he was confident that he was physically stronger than Lorna, he let her have her way, and patiently waited for her to go up to the counter. Though he couldn’t help grumbling under his breath about the fact that she could’ve easily grabbed herself a coffee before coming to find him so that they could save some time.

She finally came back to the table, and slid into the seat opposite of James. She pushed a steaming cup in front of him. “Hot chocolate. I don’t believe in giving coffee to children.”

He wanted to protest, since there had to be benefits to being in an adult body, but then he decided to just save his breath, and sip the cocoa. It was good enough to quell any complaints anyways. “So what’s so important that it couldn’t wait? I was surprised to see you braving that crowd. What if someone had tried to drag you in to everything? You don’t exactly blend in.”

Lorna reached up to tuck a stray strand of hair behind her ear, and then she shrugged. “I’ve tried artificially dying my hair before, but it’s never worked. I don’t know why, but mother nature seems determined that I look so unnatural. At least it’s easy enough to play it off as being dyed, though. There are others who are far worse off in terms of their physical appearances. People who can’t even pretend to fit in with the society we live in. I’ve got it comparatively lucky.”

When she didn’t say anything else, and just went to take a drink from her own cup, James couldn’t help leaning back in his seat, and giving her an impatient look. “You still haven’t told me what the so called important stuff is.”

Lorna sighed and put her cup down. “I’ve gotten into contact with my sister,” she said softly. “Her and my brother are both doing fine. My brother even has two little brats running around, though nowhere near as fast as him.” She sighed wistfully. “You may think I sound a little bit crazy for saying so, but I learned all of this in a dream. Not one of my own, but one that my sister directed towards me. I told her that I’d met the man she’d told me about, and asked for advice on how to get you home. She said that it is rather complicated, but that we can do it.” She sighed, and took another sip of her drink to give herself a moment. “Unfortunately, she said the trickiest part is finding the only person who can return you home. It has to be the same Wanda that sent you here.”

James blinked, then let out an uncomfortable laugh. “But that’s impossible. She’s still…” he trailed off, and took in a deep breath so that he wouldn’t just start screaming from frustration. “At least this confirms that they are definitely two separate worlds, right? Before we suspected, but there was still the possibility that somehow this is the same world, but simply transformed.”

Lorna shrugged. “I’m not going to call myself an expert on transdimensional stuff, but yeah, that would probably make things easier. Because then technically my sister here would be the same Wanda who sent you. Instead, you have to find a separate person. And to do that, you’ll need to find someone powerful enough to contact the Wanda of your world, while leaving her in your world.”

James wasn’t an expert with non-physical powers either, but even he thought that something in Lorna’s words seemed pretty obvious. “But that’s got to be impossible. And if there’s someone who could do that, why wouldn’t they just be able to send me home? And why can’t this Wanda send me home?”

Lorna shrugged again. “You’re asking the wrong person, kid. I can’t actually do anything to help you except try and get into contact with my sister again. I’ve done as much research as I could, but there isn’t exactly a lot of scientific literature on the subject of hopping from one universe to the next. If there are people who have done so intentionally and successfully, then they haven’t tried very hard to make themselves known. I’m sorry, James. But getting into contact with my sister felt important enough to alert you to it. I wish that you found the information more useful.”

James quickly shook his head. “No, it’s not that I find it useless, and I’m not trying to act ungrateful, I swear. This whole situation is just a confusing mess, though, and I have so many questions that I wish I could get the answers to.”

They both sat there in silence for a few minutes after that, neither of them entirely sure of what else to say. James was slightly startled when Lorna cleared her throat and spoke again, though it was in a soft voice. “I can’t believe I’m an aunt. Have been for the past four years, and I didn’t even know it. How messed up is that? I wish I could’ve gone with them, back then. I wish we could’ve stayed as a family.”

“I’m sorry,” James muttered, not sure of what else he could say to that. “But why didn’t you go?”

“I was needed here,” Lorna said with a sigh, as if this were something that she thought about all the time. “I needed to be here for you. But you shouldn’t blame yourself!” she quickly added. “It’s not like anyone forced me to stick around. And I do have a life here. Or at least more of a life here than I thought I could have out on the run somewhere. And you’re not the only one who’s come to me for help. Believe it or not, but the world doesn’t revolve around you. My sister gave me a short list of a few names, some who I’ve met by now, some who I haven’t. And there are others who find their way to me too.”

James tilted his head curiously. “What do they go to you for? What problems do they have? What kinds of people are they? What do they expect you to do for them?”

Lorna’s eyes flicked across the interior of the small coffee shop, which only had a few people in it, all of them engrossed in soft conversations within their small groups. Then she suddenly stood up and stretched her arms up over her head, before grabbing her cup. “Honestly, your people decided to wake up way too early for all of this. At least my sister has the excuse of living in a different time zone. Come on, let’s go back to my place. I think you probably need more than just a cup of cocoa to keep you going.” She started towards the front door, tossing her half-empty cup in the trash can before stepping outside.

James quickly hurried after her, though he didn’t like the idea of wasting when someone else had been the one to pay for his food, so he quickly chugged down the cold remainder of his drink, and then threw his cup away as well before going outside. She was waiting for him on the sidewalk, and he noticed that it was busier out now that it was actually a reasonable time for any sane human being to be awake.

They weren’t exactly close to Lorna’s place, and while James could easily survive a walk of that length, he didn’t want to waste time. He felt like all he was doing these days was wasting time, but he didn’t want to waste any more than he had to. Not only was there the threat going on in this universe, which Jim was probably much better equipped to handle, but there was also the fact that he didn’t want to go home and find time had passed. The most unnatural feeling was waking up in what felt like someone else’s body, and to hear about all the things he’d done that he had no memory of. It was bad enough for that to happen when he was getting a glimpse at someone else’s life, but he definitely didn’t want that to happen in his own life.

He hailed a passing cab, and Lorna gave him an amused look before sliding into the backseat with him. She told the driver her address before turning to look at James. “If I wasn’t the type to dislike making a scene, I could’ve gotten us to our destination much quicker and for free.” She rolled up her sleeve to reveal a slim wire band that spiraled up her entire arm. “I put one on each limb before heading out, because you never know when you’ll need some metal to work with.”

Then they were silent the rest of the way. When the cab stopped, Lorna handed some money over to the driver, and then they headed to her apartment. Once the door was closed behind them, James watched with wide eyes as Lorna shrugged off her jacket, and then what looked like molten metal spilled out from both her sleeves and pant legs, only to float up into the air and form into four perfectly smooth metal balls that landed down on the small table next to the door. “You really do have such an amazing power. Your entire family is truly something else. Much greater, and more diverse, than mine could ever claim to be.”

“We all have our uses. But my family also suffers from a different situation than your own. You and I are most similar, as we gained our powers through the genes our parents passed to us. But both of your parents got their gifts from a bottle, just like both of my siblings have.” She sighed as she sank down onto her couch, and leaned back to stare up at the ceiling. “The way we gained our powers isn’t the only thing that makes you and I most similar. We’ve both, through various means, witnessed our fathers as heroes and villains.”

James sat down on the other end of the couch so that there was a reasonable amount of space between them, but he couldn’t help leaning closer as if that would help him learn everything quicker. “You did say you take after your father. But honestly, I can’t remember either Wanda or Pietro ever mentioning their father.”

Suddenly Lorna looked overwhelmingly tired, despite the fact that it was still so early in the morning. “It’s strange to think that Pietro is a part of your Avengers team. He’s always been a bit of a selfish bastard. Though I’m sure he’s mellowed out some, now that he’s a father. Anyways, I imagine that they never mentioned our father because it would be a difficult situation to explain. Your father is a hero in your world, and was a villain in this one. Mine has never been so easy to figure out. I would think he’d be just as gray in your world as well, and no hero wants the stigma of a family that’s done wrong.” James thought of the Torunn of this world. Here, she had a secret identity, but it mostly seemed to be to protect herself from the other heroes, and not from the villains. In his world, everyone recognized Torunn’s face. He tuned back in as he realized that Lorna hadn’t finished talking yet. “I can’t entirely blame my father for the things he’s done. His ideals are admirable, but he’s always had a rather unpleasant way of going about achieving his goals. I wouldn’t call him a bad person, but he has too much blood on his hands for many people to consider him anything else.”

“I’m going to go out on a limb here- and I’ll definitely feel like an idiot if I’m wrong- but I want to guess who your father is. I hadn’t given it much thought before, but I only know of one person who’s entire ability is metal manipulation, and who also has a history of being seen as both good and bad. Is your father, by some bizarre happenstance, Magneto?”

Lorna snorted, but before James could try to defend his guess, she nodded once. “Yup,” she said, popping the ‘p’. “Personally, I’ve never even met the man before. I had no idea we were related, despite our similar power. Like I told you before, I was raised in foster care. Wanda and Pietro were the ones who eventually tracked me down, and told me that I was part of their family, even if we don’t share a mother. They said that they only knew him for a short amount of time. Apparently he actually lived in domestic peace with them and their mother for about nine years before something bad happened between them, and he grabbed the twins and took off without her. Then they were taken away by some bastards who wanted to hurt their father, and they hadn’t seen him since then. They searched for him after getting free, but he’s been off the grid for a while. While they looked for him, they eventually found me, and well. Stuff happened from there. Mostly stuff that I’ve already mentioned.”

She turned her head to look at James, and he took a moment to gather his thoughts. “I don’t think I know of a single super family that isn’t fucked up in some way or another.”

Lorna nodded. “Me neither. Not that I know very many, mind you. But it seems insane that so many people who were created to be an advanced form of human being can still manage to be so utterly dysfunctional. Maybe it just comes with the territory of being a super.”

“So do you even know who your mom is? Didn’t you ever wonder about how you could do what you can?”

Lorna shook her head. “She was never listed on my birth certificate. I was a found baby. My dad probably doesn’t even know that I exist. My guess is that it was some one night stand kind of thing, and then she dumped me off as soon as I was born. Doesn’t really matter to me. Unlike the worst case scenarios shown on television all the time, I had a pretty good foster family. A dad, and a mom, and a brother. The perfect nuclear family. We had our issues, of course, but it was mostly the normal kinds of problems. And even though they knew I was mutant from the time that I was very young, they never treated me any differently than my brother. And then eventually I got Wanda and Pietro too. So I’ve never been lacking family. And I don’t need more parents. The ones I’ve got are just fine.”

There was a short pause before James couldn’t help adding, “And they were all normal?” When Lorna nodded, he laughed. “More proof that normal families function a lot better than super families.”

Lorna laughed too. “You’re right. I hadn’t even thought about that part of it. Honestly, for a kid growing up with superpowers, I had a very average, normal home life. I’ve got to be one of the luckier supers out there. I can’t even imagine what it would be like growing up with parents who actually expect you to be able to train and use your powers and get better. I was just happy when I could pass the salt shaker hands-free and get my whole family to feel impressed.”

James leaned forward. “God, we’re all a bit messed up, aren’t we?”

“I guess so. You’re more messed up than I am though.”

James rolled his eyes. “This isn’t some kind of competition, you idiot.” He sighed. “Didn’t we come here so you could tell me about the other people who’ve come to you for help? Who they are, and what they thought you could do for them, and all that?”

Lorna sighed, as though it was a pain that she had to actually answer the questions that she’d brought him here to answer. “I try to stay off the super radar, for the most part. Of course, I didn’t go burn all my papers and move across the globe like my siblings did, but I try to keep my head down. Doesn’t stop word from getting around here and there, though. The people who come to me are mostly mutants, with occasional other supers thrown in. They need money, or advice, or help, or passage out of the country, or any number of things. I do my best to help them however I can. I don’t want to see them get hurt.”

James furrowed his eyebrows. “Why would they need so much help?”

Lorna stood up, and began pacing back and forth across the room very slowly. “I don’t know what things are like in the world that you come from, but here, things can be difficult. There’s a registry for everyone special, and some of them don’t feel comfortable putting their name down. But if they don’t and they get caught, they get in a lot of trouble for it. And if you are on the list, even though they aren’t legally allowed to, plenty of people will discriminate when it comes to hiring employees or providing services if they know someone is different. It doesn’t help that there are so many powerful supers causing nothing but fear and crime all the time.”

James frowned. “Wait. If the Avengers are all villains, then who supported the Accords? I can’t imagine that any villains would want to be stuck on a list like that.” It was an argument he’d heard many times before, though it was usually in a playful manner more than anything, thanks to how much time had passed since the initial dispute, and the way things had been peacefully resolved in the end. 

Lorna gave James a strange look. “No one knows exactly where the idea stemmed from, but one of the biggest supporters for it was your father. As far as I know, he thought it would be the easiest way to find and recruit new Avengers for his team. Everyone else agreed with him, and they completely warped the original intention of the list. I think the only one opposed to it all was Stark, but I could be wrong. All of that was a long time ago. I wasn’t even born yet when all of that went down. Don’t forget that I’m only a few years older than you are.”

It was strange that James hadn’t actually seen Tony yet, now that he thought about it. They’d been in the man’s tower, but there had been no sign of him, and no one had really talked about him at all. They didn’t seem to dislike him, at least not as far as he could tell, but it was strange that someone who’d always been so loud and in the public eye was nowhere to be seen. And James hadn’t spotted the iconic suit of armor anywhere at the big meet up earlier, but Torunn had definitely referenced Tony like he was still alive today. Was it possible that at some point in the past ten years he’d retired? Though Tony had always seemed like the sort of person who wouldn’t retire until he wound up in a body bag. “How much do you know about Tony Stark?”

If Lorna thought the sudden topic was odd, she didn’t say anything about it. “Not much. He was a big deal a long time ago, with all kinds of weapons being produced by his company. When I was a little kid, there was this huge press conference, where he claimed that he was no longer going to make weapons for anyone. It was a huge deal, especially because he disappeared like a week later, and no one’s seen or heard from him since. I think the common assumption is that the shareholders of his company were afraid of losing money, so they paid for him to be killed.”

But hadn’t Natalia said that James had a suit made by Tony? He couldn’t have made a suit for the James’ adult body if he’d died over twenty years ago. Something here didn’t make any sense. But he couldn’t blame Lorna for not knowing everything. “Thank you for everything that you’ve shared with me. I think I should probably go and take some time to think about how I could contact my world’s Wanda. If you hear anything else from her-”

“I’ll be sure to let you know,” Lorna assured him. “Don’t worry, James. We’ll figure this out and get you home, I promise.”


	12. Heroes

James- and wow that was going to get pretty confusing pretty quickly if she didn’t think of something else to call him- looked around the inside of the tower with awe. Torunn wondered if it had really changed that much in just ten years, or if it was so different because of how different the occupants were. Or maybe it was just some combination of both. 

They went up to the common floor, and Torunn hoped that maybe Steve and Natalia would be the only people around. It seemed highly unlikely, but it would be the ideal situation to be able to explain everything to them first. Of course everyone had been worried about the fact that James was missing, but it was pretty obvious that other than James’ parents, most of the Avengers were only worried because that was the hero thing to do, and not because they cared about James on a personal level. 

She wondered if James found it strange that she hadn’t let go of his wrist yet. But she couldn’t help worrying that the moment she let go, he would just disappear. Sure, he wasn’t her James exactly, but he was the closest lead she had to getting her James back- not that the James of this world belonged to her, of course!

Before she could get too flustered, not that it would actually show since she was used to hiding everything behind a big grin that she was told resembled her father’s, someone rushed at them to pull them both into a bone-crunching hug. “James! You’re back!” Steve looked so damn happy that Torunn felt guilty about having to break the bad news to him. He looked at her with excitement. “Where did you find him?”

Torunn sighed. “This is going to sound a little bit crazy, but this isn’t really James.”

Steve furrowed his eyebrows, and took a step back so that he could look down at both of them. “I’m sorry?”

Torunn glanced at James, and he nodded once before pulling his arm free from her grip, which had probably gotten too tight to be comfortable. “This is kind of a long story. The short version is that I am James Rogers, but from a different world.”

Steve looked back and forth between Torunn and James before he let out a tired sigh, and gestured towards the couches. “Maybe we should sit down. Sounds like it’s going to be a long conversation.”

“Is Natalia around?”

Steve shook his head. “Went out on a supposed top secret mission. Pretty sure she’s just looking for James though.” He peered at the James sitting on the couch, a thoughtful look on his face.

Torunn was pretty sure that that look meant that Steve was on the same page as her about the name thing, and he hadn’t even gotten more of an explanation yet. She turned to James and gently put one hand on his arm. “Look, it’s going to get way too confusing with two James’ to worry about. We’re going to call you Jimmy now.”

He yanked his arm away from her. “Hell no. I’m not going to have you of all people talk to me like I’m a toddler. Jim is fine if you insist on giving me a nickname just to make your own lives easier.”

Torunn bit her lip. “We do already have a Jim…” she trailed off at the look on his face. “But it’s fine because he’s basically retired and isn’t around that often. So Jim it is.”

James rolled his eyes. “Strike that. I refuse to be called anything other than James. I don’t see what’s so complicated about having two James’. It never got confusing where I’m from.”

Steve tilted his head curiously at that piece of information. “You call Rhodes ‘James’ in your world?”

James furrowed his eyebrows for a moment before a look of understanding crossed his face, and then he shook his head. “No. James Rhodes in my world is dead, so nobody worries about calling him anything. I’m talking about James Barnes. You’d think you’d remember the guy that you named me after,” he added with a soft snort.

It would be impossible to miss the way Steve stiffened in his seat, and stared at James with wide eyes. “What are you talking about?”

“Um, this is only ten years in the past. You should’ve found him ages ago. I can’t believe our worlds are really that different. But you still named your son after him in this world, even without having seen him since the forties? That’s some impressive dedication to the friendship, I guess.”

Steve looked like he’d been struck speechless, and it wasn’t until James mentioned ‘the forties’ that she made the connection to the few stories Steve had told about his childhood friend who’d died during the war. And James was talking about him like it was no big deal, like he was actually still alive. “Hey, maybe we should hold off on talking about how insanely different our worlds are. We don’t want to ruin anything, you know? Like what’s already going on in this world is pretty good as it is.”

Finally, Steve managed to regain his ability to speak. “Bucky’s really alive in your world?”

Torunn’s shoulders slumped down, but she leaned away, ready to get up and leave. She knew that Bucky was really important to Steve, and it wasn’t really her place to stop him from learning more about someone who meant so much to him. “Yeah. He was given the same super goop that they put in you, and he spent the majority of his seventy years in cryo sleep. Got a bit messed up from the times when they did wake him up though. Took a while to get him back to normal. But they found him several years before I was even born, so it’s weird that you haven’t found him at all yet.”

The three of them all sat in silence for a minute before Steve spoke again. “Do you know where he was found?”

James shrugged. “Pretty sure he was sent to kill you, or the you of my world anyways, because he was working for this group called Shield. You managed to convince him that family was more important than the law, I guess. Neither of you ever really talked much about that time, though. I think it was just a mess for both of you, and for all of the other Avengers.”

Steve couldn’t keep the confusion off of his face. “Why would Shield try to kill me? I’d understand if it was Hydra pretending to be Shield, but that mess was dealt with a long time ago, and Shield is clean now.”

James blinked a few times, then smiled. “Ah, I can’t believe I forgot to tell you about one of the most crucial differences I’ve noticed between our worlds. Here, the Avengers are paragons of goodness and stopping bad guys, right? Well where I’m from, it’s the other way around. The Avengers are the ones committing all the crimes, and the people who are villains here are the ones who are the heroes in my world.” His eyes flicked over to Torunn for a moment before he focused back on Steve. “With a few exceptions.”

That was apparently the most shocking thing that Steve had heard so far. Even moreso than the stuff about Bucky still potentially being alive in this world. “We’re the bad guys?”

James nodded casually, like he hadn’t just said something that totally shattered Steve’s entire worldview. “Yup. Murderous, thieving, lying, torturous criminals. Most of ‘em, anyways. Like I said, there are a few exceptions. Like Torunn. She’s a badass hero in both worlds. You, however, are definitely not an exception. You’re one of the scariest guys I ever knew.”

That news seemed to be devastating to Steve. “I can’t believe I would be…” he trailed off, unable to find the words to even describe this whole bizarre situation. Then he latched onto something James had said. “Wait- that you knew?”

James nodded solemnly. “You died fairly recently. A lot of people were pretty happy about that, considering how you were the leader of the worst super villains out there, and all. Of course, I wasn’t happy about it. I always tried to stay away from being a hero or a villain, but you were still my dad. Or the other you, anyways.”

Before Steve could say anything about how messed up this all was, a new voice suddenly intruded on the conversation. “Hey, Torunn, Friday said that you were in here, and I was wondering if we were still-” Everyone looked over to see who’d walked in, and Peter gave James a strange look. “Oh, nobody mentioned that you were back. Where have you been sulking this past week?”

James got up and walked over to Peter, looking happy to see him. “Hey man! I can’t believe I forgot to even ask about you. How are you? How are things going for you?”

Torunn wasn’t sure whether it would be more appropriate to laugh or scream about the strangeness of all of this. When Peter didn’t answer immediately, Torunn hopped up and grabbed James’ sleeve to tug him away. She knew Steve and Peter both had superb hearing, but they usually had the good grace to not listen in on conversations that were clearly meant to be private. “You and Peter don’t get along.”

James frowned. “How odd. We’re roommates back in my world. Have been for years.”

The more that James talked about his own world, the more she could understand Steve’s horror at the thought of everyone they knew and cared about being villains. “Is he… is your Peter one of the exceptions?” she asked hopefully.

“No. I can’t tell you how surprised I was when the Peter and Torunn of my world became best friends, despite the fact that he’s been a criminal for ages and she’s always been nothing but a hero. But he knew to keep all his criminal stuff out of our apartment, and we’re pretty good friends. Why doesn’t he like your James?”

Torunn shrugged. “You’re asking the wrong person. I’ve always wondered the same thing myself, but I’ve never been able to get a decent answer.”

James nodded. “I get it. They’re probably jealous of each other. Or at the very least, James is jealous of Peter. In my world, Torunn had already left home a while before Peter first showed up, and I never had any chance with her anyways. But your James probably thought he did have a chance, so he was jealous that you would spend so much time with Peter. And the jealousy might go both ways. I’d have to observe you guys in a room together for a little longer than five seconds, but it’s entirely possible that Peter has a crush on you too.”

Torunn was very grateful in that moment that she was an Asgardian, and had very good control over her body, which meant that she didn’t start blushing like crazy at what James was saying. “Don’t be ridiculous,” she muttered. “It’s not like that. For either of them.”

James scoffed. “Well, I can’t really speak for Peter, but I literally am James, and I can tell you, without a doubt, that he is madly in love with you.” Then he looked back over at where Peter was still awkwardly standing in the entrance way to the room. “On the other hand, it might not be jealousy at all that’s causing problems between James and Peter. No offense, but your Peter looks like a major toolbox.”

“What does that even mean?” Then she shook her head. “You know what? I don’t actually want to know. I was just trying to give you a friendly heads up that this Peter doesn’t get along all that great with you so you don’t act all weird or butt hurt about it. We’ll have to explain this situation to all of the Avengers anyways, just so that nothing odd happens, but you should know how to act at least a little bit.”

James shrugged. “Well, maybe I don’t want to be friends with that giant nerd over there anyways. Had you even considered that? If I knew him for longer than a few seconds, I would’ve already changed my mind about wanting to act friendly with him, I promise. And if all the Avengers are going to know that I’m not their James, then it shouldn’t matter that I’m just going to act like myself.”

He grabbed Torunn’s hand to pull her back over to where Steve and Peter were talking quietly. Peter peered past Steve to get a look at James. “Uh, hi.”

Steve gestured to the couches. “You hadn’t finished explaining things yet, and I think that it would be best to hear it from the man himself.” Then Steve’s eyes inevitably landed on where Torunn and James’ hands were connected. “How old did you say you were again?” he asked in a thinly disguised cold tone. 

James blinked, then smiled. “I don’t remember saying specifically beyond the fact that this is all ten years ago for me.”

Steve nodded once, and then slowly sank down onto one of the couches. Torunn pulled her hand free from James’ before she sat down next to Steve instead. “He said I have to basically date him if we don’t want him to run off before we can get our James back.”

James narrowed his eyes. “Why’d you-”

“You said I could tell them whatever I want and you’d go along with it,” she pointed out, just barely stopping herself from sticking her tongue out at him. Before James could try to argue, which he would definitely fail at since he really had said she could tell the others whatever she wanted to, she turned to Peter. “Hey, want to know something interesting? In the world that this James is from, they don’t have any toothbrushes.”

James frowned, looking confused. “What are you talking about? Of course we have toothbrushes.”

Torunn shrugged. “Oh, then I guess there’s no excuse for your stinky breath,” and then she actually did stick her tongue out at him. 

For a moment, James seemed too shocked to be able to actually reply, but then he just snorted. “Yeah, yeah, laugh it up. It’s not exactly like I had time to pack a bag before being whooshed off to an alternate universe, or parallel dimension, or whatever this is.” He didn’t look bothered, though. He just kept looking at Torunn with the same unreadable expression that she was used to seeing on her universe’s James. 

Then she leaned back, and waved her hands at James. “So are you going to continue explaining everything to us?”

He shrugged. “It’s not like there’s really a lot to explain. I don’t know any more than you do about how I actually got here, and anything else I could talk about would just be about how different our worlds are.” He glanced over at Peter, who looked rather uncomfortable. “I’m assuming that you didn’t start out by hacking ATMs in this world?”

Peter’s eyes widened, and it was clear that he was offended by the question. “What are you talking about? Of course I’d never do anything like that! Maybe you wouldn’t know because you’ve never been a hero, but heroes don’t do things like that.”

James tilted his head. “If you’re trying to hurt my feelings, it’s not going to work. I’ve never tried to be a hero. Never interested in the gig. Long hours, little recognition, and the bad guys just keep coming no matter how much the heroes fight against them, so honestly, it’s an entirely pointless job. And it’s even worse to be a villain because they might get rich if they’re good enough, but basically everyone will hate them. So I’ve stayed away from all of that mess, and survived on a normal job.” He laughed at the surprised look on the three heroes’ faces. “Taking bloody money from my family would completely ruin the whole point of staying out of all that. I make pretty decent money working construction.” He crossed his arms over his chest. “If this really is a swap kind of situation, then I really hope that your James isn’t going to make me lose my job. That would totally suck. Then again, I could just stay here forever and find something better to do. Though I can’t help feeling like I’m a lot weaker here than I am in my own body. Actually, from what little I could learn about online and such, I’m pretty sure that everyone here is weaker than their counterparts in my world.”

The four of them sat in silence for a moment as they took in that information. Then Torunn’s eyes drifted over to the clock, and she jumped up. “Oh my god, Peter, we have to get going if we’re going to make it before closing!”

Peter looked at his wristwatch, and then jumped up as well. “Sorry, totally lost track of time. Come on!”   
He started towards the elevator, and Torunn went to follow, but James suddenly reached up to snatch her arm as she passed by him. “Where are you guys going? On a date or something? Because I remember you agreeing that you were going to date me.”

“It’s not a date, we’re friends. And I’m allowed to have friends outside of my significant other.” She didn’t miss the way that James’ eyes darkened at the words ‘significant other’ but decided to just ignore that. “And you should really catch up with Steve, anyways. You’re the closest thing he’s got so far to getting his son back.”

James frowned. “What happened a year ago?” he asked in an abrupt change of topic. “Peter doesn’t even know me, so saying I’m not a hero as a way to insult me doesn’t make any sense. But he does know your James, and what would upset him. And you seemed pretty damn hopeful that maybe whatever major incident occurred wasn’t your James’ doing, so I’m curious to know what he did, exactly.”

They were technically the same person, but it really was only on a technicality. This James had gotten an entirely different childhood and had been raised very differently, and his different experiences had made him into a different person. Which meant that the things this world’s James did weren’t any of his business. “I don’t see how it’s relevant to you either way,” was the politest way she could think of to tell him such.

“Whatever. Have fun on your date.”

Was this what dating James would always be like? She didn’t think her James would be so quick to jealousy or- well, it didn’t matter either way, because she was only fake dating this James, and she had no plans to really date any James Rogers any time soon. But she had already agreed to this, and knew that she at least needed to make an effort to spend time with him if she didn’t want him running off with her James’ body. “We can go to the movies tomorrow,” she offered. “If nothing else comes up.” That way they wouldn’t have to talk, or really even look at each other. It seemed like a perfect solution.

Maybe James could understand Torunn’s line of thinking, because he didn’t look very happy, but he did let go of her. “Fine. It’s a date.”

Torunn nodded once, and then hurried to the elevator, where Peter was waiting impatiently. Hopefully they would get to the museum before it closed. It was the last day that the exhibit would be open to the public. Though if it really came down to it, she could always beg Tony to arrange for her and Peter to get in before everything was packed up, but she hated using her influential connections to do things that most people couldn’t do.

So she decided that it would be okay to let Peter swing them all the way to the museum, because it was a cheaper and faster alternative to taking a cab, and she just tried not to think too hard about what James had said. Peter couldn’t really be interested in her like that, could he? She peered at him, but he had the same look of concentration that he always wore when swinging around, so she wasn’t sure what else he might be thinking of at the moment.

Then Torunn decided that it didn’t really matter. Her and Peter had been friends for years, and there was no reason for that to change in any way. James was just acting out because he was the jealous one, as strange as it was to think about. Sure, she’d never discouraged him from always following him around, but was that really enough to make someone like her in a romantic sort of way? In moments like these, Torunn wished that she could just go back in time to a year ago, before everything had gotten weird. Before everything had changed because she hadn’t been strong enough to stop it from happening.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I really wanted to call him Jim to avoid confusion, but I guess my inner trekkie wouldn't let that happen, because my hands just kept typing James without me meaning for them to


	13. Chapter 13

The meet up of all the supers had already disbanded by the time James left Lorna’s, and he decided to head back to the tower to see what was going on. He doubted that even someone as amazing as Torunn would be able to get everyone organized and working together smoothly within such a short amount of time, but hopefully there had been at least some progress on that front. 

When he got to the tower, he was surprised to find that it wasn’t completely packed, at least not in the common areas. He tried to ask Friday where he could find Natalia before he forgot about the fact that Friday didn’t seem to be a thing in this world, and then wandered off to try and find the woman on his own.

It took a few minutes, and some strange looks from the people he asked for help, but then he managed to track down this very scary version of his mother. She was lounging on a couch next to Bucky, and they were watching some weird looking Russian movie. He cleared his throat to announce his presence, not wanting to startle someone as dangerous as Natalia. 

The woman tilted her head back to look at him, and then arched one eyebrow. “And where have you been? It was your idea to ask that abomination for help, and then you just left us alone with her.”

James had to refrain from pointing out that Torunn had been the one very much outnumbered in that situation, and that she was definitely not an abomination. Instead, he just kept a neutral expression on his face. “So how did things end up going?”

Natalia shrugged, and for a moment, she seemed almost disappointed to not have gotten a rise out of James. “About as well as you can expect.”

“Everyone was divided into smaller groups because it would be far too difficult for all the supers to meet up like that again. It was the Asgardian’s idea,” Bucky added. “She also provided a list of appropriate ‘team building exercises’ for each group since they all contain a mix of heroes and villains. She’s a smart kid.”

That was probably the nicest thing James was ever going to hear about Torunn in this place, though he was surprised that it came from Steve’s best friend. Natalia and Steve weren’t even romantically tangled, at least not in James’ world, and as far as he could tell, not here either, and she seemed far angrier at Torunn than Bucky did. It was something he’d have to try and figure out later. 

He cleared his throat once as he thought about his conversation with Lorna. He was sure that there was probably some easy and tactful way to go about his next question, but if there was, he couldn’t think of it off the top of his head. Instead, James slowly walked around the couch so that he was standing in front of Natalia and Bucky, and he jammed his hands awkwardly into his pants pockets. “Do you know anything about Tony Stark?”

Natalia exchanged a quick glance with Bucky, where they seemed to share an entire silent conversation within just a second or two, and then she focused back on James. “He makes weapons and armor for us,” she said slowly, like she was talking to a complete moron. Which really wasn’t fair, since she knew that things were different between James’ world and this one. “He made your suit too, even though you claimed you’d never need it.”

James furrowed his eyebrows. “It’s just- I haven’t seen him anywhere around the tower, and I haven’t heard anything about him on the news lately even though I’m used to there being entire segments dedicated solely to whatever he’s up to.”

Natalia tilted her head. “The differences between our worlds are really quite fascinating. Are you saying that Tony Stark is still a big public figure there?”

James nodded. “Yeah. I mean, he’s always been big, but becoming Iron Man really stretched his image in front of the public.”

“Fascinating,” Natalia said in a tone that made it clear how not at all fascinated she was. “Well he hasn’t been a public figure around here in years. Since before you were even born. It’s what’s best for everyone. He gets to continue doing what he loves best, and the team is always equipped with nothing but the best.”

It took a moment, and then James felt like he was going to be sick as he realized what Natalia was saying. “The Avengers… kidnapped him? And keep him locked up somewhere to keep making stuff for them?” He hadn’t been super close to Tony, but the old man had had a clear love and appreciation for all of the Avengers and all of their family. And while he could easily lose track of time and not leave his workshop for days on end, he also thrived in social environments, and loved being around other people. 

Of course it had been shocking to be told that his entire family of heroes were actually villains around here, but he’d still managed to not really believe it. Not until that moment. To kidnap a man, a good man, and force him to do nothing but work all the time was horrifying. Even if they gave him the nicest prison in the world, which James had no idea if they did or not, and they let him keep his name on the tower, it was still absolutely horrifying, and he hated it. How could they do that? Why would they do that? Tony loved to be a part of the Avengers, and why would that be any different in this world, if he’d just been given the chance?

James didn’t realize that his questions had just been asked out loud until Natalia shrugged, and then answered. “You said that the abomination in your world is still a hero, right? While Tony Stark was the same way. A hero in both worlds. He started working at Stark Industries as soon as he was old enough to sketch his own blueprints, but he always refused to make any weapons with his own hands. He also donated lots of money to charities, spoke up for all the people who didn’t have a voice, did all the sickeningly nice things he could think of. Wanted to take after his dear old dad.”

“Howard?” From what James had heard of Howard, and seen in some very old video reels, the man had been a horrible human being. Always drinking, making weapons without caring about the consequences, and abusive towards his family with his words and his fists. 

Natalia must’ve been able to see the confusion on James’ face. “Yes. He was often thought of as the world’s first superhero. He was called the Future Man because of how his advanced technologies allowed him to be a hero. He helped create the super soldier serum because he believed that it would bring more heroes into this world. He might’ve been right, if he hadn’t chosen Steve Rogers of all people.”

That was insane. Whatever greater power out there that had reversed the roles of all the heroes and the villains had acknowledged the fact that the Howard Stark of James’ world was a villain, even if he didn’t go out robbing banks and kidnapping innocent civilians all of the time. But Tony’s role hadn’t been flipped exactly, since he’d never really been a villain at all. It was more likely that with Howard raising him the way a loving father should, Tony had never been given any reason to act so outrageously growing up. And now that Tony was locked up somewhere, forced to help the villains he must despise. “Why did they choose Steve for the project if he wasn’t a goody two shoes in this world?”

Bucky let out a soft snort. “That definitely isn’t something I would ever call him, at least not to his face. But just because he wasn’t exactly like that didn’t mean he didn’t have other heroic qualities. He was brave, and strong, and really good at sweet talking. Oh, and of course there’s the part where he planted a bomb in Howard Stark’s car, framing one of his squadmates as being undercover Hydra, and then rescuing Howard from the explosion. He didn’t admit to that stunt until a lot later, obviously, and at the time it all worked to make him look like the idea candidate for the project.”

“Jesus Christ, this universe is so bizarre,” James muttered. He just couldn’t get over the idea of poor Tony being locked up and forced to make weapons for the Avengers. Did Torunn know about that? Tony would’ve been captured before she was even brought to Earth, so maybe no one had bothered to tell her? Because surely if she knew that an innocent man was being held captive, she would’ve done everything in her power to set him free, right? That’s what being a hero was all about.

Bucky sounded amused. “We could say the same about yours. It’s only so bizarre to you because it isn’t the one that you were raised in. Doesn’t make this one better or worse than yours, just makes it different.”

James was pretty sure that this universe was definitely worse, but decided that he had more important things to try arguing about at the moment. “I don’t suppose you’d let Tony go if I asked real nicely?”

Natalia just gave him a hard look that was answer enough to his question. Of course they weren’t going to release the guy who was constantly keeping them capable of staying ahead of their enemies. James could try and discreetly figure out where Tony was being held to rescue the man himself, but that brought up so many other questions. Was it even James’ place to try and interfere with the way this universe worked? Of course he thought it was unfair to witness his family as villains, but it’s not like he was going to be able to reform them, and he was hoping to get out of this place as soon as possible, and then none of this would even be his problem anymore, right?

After a long moment of awkward silence, Bucky cleared his throat. “So what brought Tony Stark to your mind anyways? Is he the only one from your world that you haven’t seen around here yet or something?”

James shrugged. “Something like that,” he muttered. It’s not like Lorna was a huge secret, since Bucky had been there when James had gone to visit her the first time, but he thought it was best to keep her as separate from the Avengers as possible. She was just an innocent woman trying to help James out of a bad situation, and she didn’t deserve to be dragged into any trouble for that. And he wouldn’t want to bring her into the middle of everything, and somehow accidentally bring Wanda and Pietro into everything too, when they were trying to stay on the down low. 

There was another awkward moment, and then Natalia abruptly stood up from the couch, and started walking towards James. He took a couple of involuntary steps back, more intimidated by the woman than he wanted to admit. When she was right in front of him, far too close for comfort, she spoke in a soft voice. “I believe that it would be best for everyone if you were to just forget about Stark. You can appreciate the good work he does for us without worrying constantly about him. The man isn’t unhappy with his current situation, even if it’s not what he would’ve chosen for himself, and I don’t want you getting involved and messing things up for everyone else. You are not my son, and I have no reason to trust you. I don’t suggest you give me any reasons to distrust you, either.”

James gulped, and then nodded once. “Sure.” Hearing Natalia say he wasn’t her son did hurt a little bit, but not as much as he might’ve expected such a thing to do. Maybe it’s because the harshness in her voice made it obvious that she was a distinctively different person than the Natalia that had helped raise him. “I think I’m just going to head home now,” he said awkwardly. Honestly, he was pretty impressed with how easily he was able to make this body, which was that of a jacked, matured man, sound like some idiotic teenager.

He hurried out of the tower, and took a cab back to his and Peter’s apartment. When he got there, no one else was home, and he wondered if Peter had a girlfriend in this world. Had he thought to ask that yet? It was strange to think that in this universe he was friendly enough with Peter to ask him about his personal life. And to even frickin’ live with him. Him and Peter had always silently hated each other back in James’ world.

Since Peter wasn’t around, though, and James didn’t know enough about the villain’s life or schedule to know what he might be interrupting if he were to call him, James flopped down on his bed to stare blankly up at the ceiling. That was fun, right? 

After a few minutes, his mind wandered back to the idea of Tony Stark being trapped away somewhere, forced to create things for his captors. And if what Lorna said was accurate, then Tony had been kidnapped something like forty years ago. The only upside James could see to that horrific situation was that Tony would probably be healthier in this world, because he wouldn’t have sustained any injuries as Iron Man, and the Avengers here seemed to like efficiency, which means they’d probably gotten him dry as soon as they’d nabbed him.

As he thought about Tony, he couldn’t help thinking of Torunn as well. The two of them were both heroes in both worlds, even if their circumstances were very different. It couldn’t be as simple as they were just meant to be heroes, because in James’ world, his father was very clearly meant to be a hero, and had been from the day he was born. Even when he did things that were unpopular, he only did them because he genuinely thought they were the right things to do. 

So what was it about Torunn and Tony specifically that made them stay the same despite the fact that everyone else had been switched around? Besides the fact that both of their first names started with the letter ‘T’, anyways. After a moment of consideration, he wondered if he should add himself to the short list as well. Sure, he’d considered himself a hero back in his own world, but he’d done something very non-heroic. Maybe more of an anti-hero thing. And in this world, this James had just kept himself completely away from choosing to be either a hero or a villain just to avoid conflict. So in both worlds he was more of a gray area. And in both worlds he was apparently madly in love with Torunn. 

Torunn, Tony, and Peter. Though Torunn was forced to keep a secret identity and had been shunned by her family, and Tony was forced to work for villains, and this James didn’t want anything to do with either side of the criminal world, they were all the closest to constants that there were. Though now that he really thought about it, there were even more things that hadn’t been completely flipped than he’d originally considered. 

Project Rebirth had still been made to create a superhero for the United States. Steve Rogers and Bucky Barnes had still been in the military in the 1940s, and Steve had still made it to the current time, though James hadn’t thought to ask if the story about crashing the plane in the ice to save New York was the same. Pietro wasn’t a hero in this world, but he wasn’t a villain either, he was just off living a normal life somewhere. Wanda had remained in the same position of helping people without being an official hero. Shield still backed the Avengers, even if both of them had swapped their morals with their counterparts. Torunn and Peter were still best friends. Natalia was still a scary ex-spy. The Accords had still been created to get super powered individuals to register themselves as super.

There were plenty of things that hadn’t really changed, even if some of them were a lot smaller than others. It meant that as unfamiliar as this world seemed at first, it wasn’t entirely different than the one James had come from. He wasn’t quite sure what to do with this new revelation, but he felt like it had to be at least somewhat important. Maybe some clue was hidden away in everything he’d just thought of, but he just needed to find it. 

James grabbed the laptop that had been resting on his bedside table since he’d first woken up here, and after plugging it in, found that it was password protected. He tried all of his usual passwords, but none of them worked, so he gave up, and headed out to the nearest public library. Maybe Peter would somehow know James’ password, because there could be important information stored somewhere on the laptop, but for now, James just needed anything that would offer him a basic internet search engine.

At the library, he used one of the computers to start looking up various historical events to see what was the same as his world, and what had changed. He scribbled everything important down in the notebook he’d had the foresight to bring along, also making note of to what degree the different things had been changed. 

By the time the library was ready to close up, James had compiled a pretty reasonable amount of research. He knew now that all the major events in history prior to Howard Stark’s birth appeared to have happened exactly as James remembered them. Not that he’d ever bothered paying much attention in class, but he knew all the common knowledge about those events, and it was enough to see that nothing had changed. Which meant that the changes had all been relevant to the existence of superheroes and supervillains.

Most of the things that happened during WWII had been pretty similar, at least in terms of why the war had started, and that millions of innocent Jewish people and other minorities had been killed at the hands of Hitler. He’d also looked up information about this world’s Steve. His childhood had been the same, raised solely by his mother, being a sickly kid, and having Bucky as his best friend.

But this Steve had fought past his asthma and ill body and fought to make his body into a weapon so that he was strong, even if he wasn’t very tall. He and Bucky had enlisted in the military together, and both of them had been accepted without any trouble. Steve was just a regular old soldier, until he made a deal with Hydra- who were still the bad guys in this world- to sell them important information in exchange for lots of money and a high ranking position. When he went to steal the information, he found out about Project Rebirth, and was instantly interested.

He arranged for an ‘accidental’ meeting with Howard Stark, and then did everything in his power to befriend the man and show that he was a good candidate. At some point, Peggy Carter had apparently warned Howard that Steve was up to no good- which meant that Peggy was a hero in both worlds- and then she was killed in a freak accident soon after. Historians suspected that Steve had been the one to kill her, though at the time he was still playing the part of a perfect hero and friend. 

Steve ended up being chosen for the project after saving Howard’s life, though Steve himself had later confessed to being the one to plant the bomb, and was given the super soldier serum. Even then, he sold out everyone involved, and Hydra made a move to kill all the scientists and steal the formula. 

Steve continued to play the good guy so that he was in a position to get more classified information to give to Hydra, who soon began winning the war. The data after that was a little vague, but from what James could tell, Howard had figured out that Steve was a villain, and confronted him in his full superhero getup. Howard was the one who set the plane to crash into the ice, and then was able to fly away thanks to his creations as the Future Man. Steve hit the ice, and Howard refused to look for him, because he assumed the man was dead, and didn’t want to give him a proper burial after everything he’d done.

Hydra was defeated for the most part, but small chapters remained existent, paying off the authorities and refraining from causing too much harm to keep the attention off of themselves. Howard Stark stayed active as the Future Man until the day he and his wife were killed in a car accident, leaving the young Tony Stark as his only successor. 

James returned to the apartment with his mind flitting through everything that he’d learned today. It was insane how everything could seem so similar and yet so vastly different at the same time. All he could think about as he fell into his bed was that he just wanted to go home, to a world where everything made sense and where he would actually feel safe.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Decided that I wanted a little more backstory for this world, but it took me a while to figure out what exactly I wanted to change, and how I wanted to change it. Also didn't help that I got a new tattoo on my arm that made it pretty awkward to type while it was healing, so I'm sorry for the long delay : )


	14. Chapter 14

When Peter did finally get home, it was around two in the morning, and James couldn’t help waggling his eyebrows suggestively. “And what have you been up to all night, young man?”

Peter rolled his eyes, though he had a bright look about him, which made it seem like something good must’ve happened to him while he was out. He sat down next to James, then reached over to snatch the remote so that he could change the television channel away from the very dramatic German soap opera James had found. It was yet another difference in this world that he’d discovered; the big secondary language in the country was German instead of Spanish, though it had been difficult to try and figure out if that was something that had happened before or after Howard Stark entered the scene.

Peter settled on a rerun of some vaguely familiar looking sitcom, and then angled himself to look at James. “I was really just out working, but I happen to be one of the few people in the world who can honestly claim to enjoy my job.”

A sour taste seemed to suddenly appear in the back of James’ throat. “Right,” he choked out. He assumed that by ‘working’, Peter actually meant that he’d been out committing crimes and terrorizing the innocent citizens of the city. “Um, hey, can I talk to you about something? I basically spent all day doing research, and I was wondering if you know anything that could be helpful. I’m trying to figure out if there’s like an exact moment that our two universes started to split and become different.”

“Not sure why it matters either way, but sure, I guess I can help.”

James grabbed his notebook off of the coffee table, and held it out to Peter. “I tried looking at major events in history, and from what I can recall from school, that stuff all went down the same for as far back as I thought to look, though the problem is that smaller details could have changed and I would have no way of knowing that. Anyways, it seems like the most notable differences begin somewhere around the 1920s. One of them being Howard Stark. Your mom said that he was a good person and raised his son to be a good person, but the Howard Stark I’ve heard about was an abusive piece of garbage who totally screwed up his son. Also in my world, Howard Stark was an inventor, but he never tried to become a superhero himself. Steve Rogers was born roughly a year after Howard, and seemingly had the same childhood I’ve heard about, though it’s impossible to really know the smaller details at this point. He never spent a single moment being villainous in my world.”

Peter flipped through the notebook as James spoke, and then looked up at him with one eyebrow arched. “So what are you trying to get at here?”

James shrugged. “I’m not exactly sure, but it doesn’t feel unfair with the current amount of information I have to say that the most noticeable differences between our worlds all seem to take place after Howard Stark’s birth.”

Peter snorted. “Look, I don’t know much about history, but I was always a bit of a science geek growing up, and I can assure you that your current process is completely flawed. Even if you can say with a hundred percent certainty that all the changes take place after what, 1917? you can’t say for sure that it was Stark Sr responsible for that. There were millions of people born that year, and that’s just assuming that the divergence was caused by a specific person. It also could’ve been one of a billion different events that took place. And that’s not even considering the fact that the change could have actually taken place before or after that year. Without having knowledge of literally everything that ever happened in both worlds, you can’t narrow everything down to a single year. Even if Howard Stark is somehow the catalyst to everything, which there’s absolutely no evidence to support, you can’t even assume that it started when he was born. You just can’t really assume everything.”

“Too bad Howard Stark died the same way in this world that he did in mine, so I can’t even try to talk to him about what may or may not have happened.” And his wife was dead too, so talking to her about everything wasn’t an option. But there was still someone around who probably knew a lot about Howard Stark, and would also (hopefully) be open-minded to the idea of believing James about coming from a very different world.

James abruptly stood up, and grabbed his notebook back from Peter. “Thanks for your help!” Then he darted off to his bedroom. He couldn’t ask for Peter’s help because no matter how friendly the two of them might be in this world, it seemed highly unlikely that Peter would be willing to help do something that would completely go against the people he thought of as family.

But there was someone else who might be willing to help. He ducked back out of his room before going all of the way in, and went back to where Peter was still sitting on the couch, looking vaguely confused. “Hey, do you think it would be weird if you gave me Torunn’s number?”

“Uh, yeah, I think that that would be really weird. You guys haven’t talked in ages, or at least Jim and her haven’t talked in ages, and there’s all kinds of bad blood between her and the Avengers, and also, it seems slightly stalkerish to try and get a girl’s number from her best friend just because you couldn’t get it from her.”

James quickly shook his head. “It’s not like that. I didn’t even think of asking for her number earlier, but honestly, it’s not like I can use Jim’s phone without knowing the password.” He paused for a moment, and then snorted. “That’s probably why I didn’t answer when you called me about the super meeting. I haven’t touched Jim’s phone since I got here, and it’s probably dead by now. So for all I know, Jim actually does have Torunn’s phone number in there, and I just can’t access it. Come on, please? I swear that I would never do anything to hurt Torunn, I just need her help with something important.”

Peter narrowed his eyes, but after a few long seconds he finally sighed, and grabbed a pen off the coffee table, and then got up and grabbed one of James’ hands. He wrote the digits across the palm, to James’ amazement. There was barely anyone his age in his time who bothered to memorize phone numbers, so he wouldn’t expect people these days to ever bother with such a thing. Then again, Peter had always been pretty smart. Maybe he just naturally remembered those kinds of things. “If I find out you’ve abused the privilege…” He trailed off menacingly, which succeeded in making his threat sound more frightening. 

James shook his head again. “I wouldn’t do that, I swear. Thank you so much, man.” Then he went back to his room, this time successfully getting all the way inside and closing the door behind him. He searched around briefly, but couldn’t find any sign of a cell phone. He’d have to wait and call Torunn tomorrow from a payphone, since he couldn’t recall seeing a landline anywhere around the apartment. Which made sense. There was no point in paying an extra phone bill when both Peter and Jim had their cell phones. So for now, all he could do was sleep, though he made sure to carefully copy down Torunn’s number onto a piece of paper first.

As soon as James got up and got showered and dressed, he headed out to find the nearest payphone. Unfortunately, he hadn’t considered the fact that with most people having cell phones, there was no need for payphones, and he couldn’t find a single one, even as an old relic or something. Frustrated that it had come to this, James ended up asking random strangers to borrow their phones because his was dead. It took several tries before someone actually agreed, not that James could blame them, considering how many criminals were running around in the city.

He quickly dialed Torunn’s number, and tried to ignore the way the owner of the phone hovered around him, probably preparing themself to snatch the device back if he tried to make a run for it. He silently begged Torunn to be awake and to answer her phone, because the idea of walking around all day and trying to find multiple people who would let him try calling her did not seem very appealing.

The phone rang several times, and just when he was about to give up, he heard a beautifully familiar, and also sleepy sounding, voice. “Hello?”

“Torunn! It’s me, James. I need to meet up with you to talk about something important.” He wasn’t stupid enough to think that any of his plan was something that would be wise to discuss over the phone at all, let alone in a public place with someone standing so close to him.

There was a few seconds of silence, and then Torunn let out a soft yawn before answering. “Uh, sure. I can swing by the apartment today, if that works for you.”

“Perfect! Come around noon-ish?” He’d have to figure out a way to make sure that Peter was out of the apartment around then, but it would definitely be worth the effort.

Torunn sounded a little confused by James’ enthusiasm, or maybe she was just too tired to understand how anyone else could be so chipper at the moment, but she agreed, and then hung up. James handed the phone back to its owner, thanked them profusely, and then hurried back to the apartment with a skip in his step. 

By the time he got back, Peter was already gone, and James just hoped that the man would stay gone for a while. Maybe he’d been smart enough to assume that James would call Torunn as soon as possible, and had purposely gotten himself out of the way for the time being. 

Even though Torunn had been by the apartment recently to visit with Peter, James still felt the sudden urge to clean everything. It wasn’t very surprising that the place already looked neat and tidy, since James had always been strict on himself to keep his spaces looking perfect, but he’d always assumed that Peter was a messy person. Or maybe that had just been his personal bias that had always led him to imagine the older man living in a place covered in webs and bugs everywhere.

Regardless of the current clean state of the apartment, though, James spent a little while making sure that everything was extra clean. He didn’t think he’d ever be able to get rid of the part of himself that was madly in love with Torunn and wanted to impress her at all times, even if it was just something as stupid as a clean living area.

There was a knock on the front door of the apartment a few minutes before noon, and James happily invited Torunn inside. From the look on her face, it seemed like she expected this visit to end up being awkward for both of them. But James had something else in mind, since he hadn’t actually called her here just to socialize. 

Once they were both seated in the living room with a glass of water in hand, James cleared his throat. He decided that it would be best to just jump right into the reason he’d called her over. “Do you know who Tony Stark is?”

Torunn’s mouth slanted up as she thought about it, and then she ended up shaking her head. “Sorry, no. Why do you ask?”

James sighed. “It’s a bit complicated, but the short version is that he was one of the first superheroes in my world, and also a great inventor, genius, and overall awesome person. In this world, he’s being held against his will somewhere by the Avengers, where they force him to make all of their equipment without any compensation. I want to rescue him, but I know that I can’t do it alone, and you’re a hero, so it’s kind of your job to help people in situations like this, right?”

Torunn blinked a few times, and it was pretty obvious that this wasn’t what she’d expected James to say. But after a moment, a serious expression took over her features, which meant that she was already brainstorming ideas on how they could solve this problem. “Sadly, it’s not all that hard to believe that our family would do something like that. Do you have any idea of where he is being held?”

“My first guess would be the tower. It’s named after him because it was his long before the Avengers took it over. But there’s so many floors and rooms and hidden areas that it would take forever to search the entire place by ourselves without getting caught. And it might be the too-obvious answer, anyways. For all we know, he’s being kept in an underground bunker in the middle of the Sahara Desert.”

Torunn nodded thoughtfully. “Well, in that case, I can say for sure that this doesn’t sound like it’s going to be an easy mission. But you’re right, it is part of my job to try and help people like that.” She tilted her head and gave James a curious look. “So you just want to help him out of the goodness of your heart too?”

There was no reason to lie to Torunn about this. “He was a good man in my world, and he cared a lot about my version of the Avengers, and about helping to save the world. He had a rough start and a lot going against him, but he always managed to persevere and grow stronger. Someone like that doesn’t deserve to be treated like a vending machine that gives out new prizes every time you pull the lever. But admittedly, I do have another reason for wanting to rescue him. It’s kind of a long story, but I want to talk to him about his father. I have reason to believe that his father might have been somehow involved in creating all the major differences in this world. Of course I would want to save Tony either way, but in this case it does have the added benefit of giving me a chance to talk to him.”

Torunn didn’t really look judgemental. She just shrugged, and leaned back. “Alright, I believe you. So now we’re just going to plan a rescue mission. Maybe you shouldn’t be involved, though. The Avengers all despise me already, so I don’t think that I can do anything to make them hate me even more. But they still care about you, or Jim at least, but if you’re caught making such a big move against them, there’s no way that they won’t take it personally.”

“They understand that I’m not actually their son and won’t blame him for any of this,” James said with more confidence than he felt. “Look, I know that you’ve always seen Jim as a kind of neutral figure, which is it’s own type of cowardice, because it means he never had the courage to just take a solid stand for what he believes in. But I’m not like that. I’ve always been a hero in my world, even if I have made a couple of big mistakes before. I want to help save Tony because it’s the right thing to do, even if it does mean potentially putting myself on the Avengers’ hit list.”

Torunn reached out to pat James’ shoulder. “I wouldn’t worry about it too much if I were you. I’m the reason your dad died, and they still haven’t resorted to trying to kill me on sight. Though there’s always time for them to start.” Then she pulled her hand away, and stretched out before settling back against the couch. “So, where do we begin?”


	15. Chapter 15

James looked around, and he could feel the sweat making his palms clammy, and his leg wouldn’t stop bouncing up and down. “Maybe I was wrong, and this isn’t such a good idea after all. I mean, they must have even better security measures in the tower than the Avengers do in my world.” 

Torunn looked at James with one eyebrow arched. “I already told you that you don’t have to come along and do this. Whether it’s because you don’t want to ruin your reputation with your family, or because you’re just a little frightened to go through with this, it’s perfectly okay. I’d understand if you are afraid, considering the fact that you’re actually still just a teenager. Even if you weren’t, Jim doesn’t have much experience with the whole super-thing. No one would blame you for turning back. I’m a hero, so it’s my job to rescue people who are in need. You don’t have the same obligations.”

James shook his head. “Even if it’s not like that in this world, I am still a hero, or at least, I was raised to be one. I made my fair share of mistakes, and did things that no one who calls themself a hero should ever do, I still want to do heroic things. It is my obligation to help. And Tony always did so much for me and my family. Even if it’s not technically the same Tony, this is the least I can do to give back to him. And he’s a lot closer to being the same Tony as mine than any of the other family members I have here are. I’m not trying to chicken out, I swear. I just want to make sure that we’re fully prepared for this mission. And fully prepared for the disappointment that might come out of this if it turns out that Tony’s either not in the tower, or not anywhere that we can find him in there.”

Torunn smiled, and reached over to give James a gentle pat on the shoulder. “You’re a good person. I’m sure that whatever mistakes you’ve made, you’ll figure out how to fix them. As for this mission, I think that we’re about as prepared as we can possibly get, once you consider the fact that there’s very little about the security posted online, and that no matter how well I remember it all, there’s probably a lot that’s changed since I was last in there. Waiting to do this isn’t going to magically make it any easier. It’s best for us to just get this done and hope for the best. And in the case that we don’t find your Tony, we’ll figure things out from there, okay? But I do promise that even if it takes a while, we will get him eventually.”

James nodded in satisfaction with the promise, and then slid out of the taxi that they’d decided to take to the tower. Torunn handed some money over to the driver, and then the two heroes stood on the sidewalk, staring up at the supposedly impenetrable fortress that they were going to attempt to break inside of.

James wasn’t sure where to find the suit that Tony had made him, and he wasn’t even sure if Jim had held on to the thing. But he didn’t really need a fancy suit. Sure, he wasn’t anywhere near as strong or as indestructible as his father, but short of wearing some bulky metal suit of armor, he couldn’t think of any ways that a suit would really increase his chances in a fight. 

Well, that wasn’t entirely true. Even if he couldn’t think of what kind of a suit Tony might have built for him, he knew that if Tony was the one who had made it, it was bound to be a tide-turning sort of outfit. But that didn’t matter right now, since he wasn’t going to postpone this mission just to try and find the thing. 

He took a deep breath in, then slowly let it out. He could do this. No problem. It would be simple enough to sneak inside, somehow figure out where Tony was being held if he was even in the tower, and then sneak past all of the security to get to wherever that hidden prison was, grab Tony, and then sneak back out of the tower. Sure. No big deal. 

Torunn motioned for James to follow her around to the side of the tower. Obviously they couldn’t just go in through the front doors, though around here those doors were locked up tight even during the day, so it’s not like it was ever really much of an option. 

At first, James had been very hesitant at the idea of sneaking in during the day. But Torunn had explained that that was when the villains were least likely to be home, and it would make it easier for them to see what they were doing, so that no one could sneak up on them in the dark. It did make sense, in a way. No one would be expecting a break in during the day, probably. Then again, it was hard to say for sure what people expected to happen in this kind of neighborhood. 

The two of them picked a spot that was supposed to be a blind spot in the cameras, though Torunn couldn’t guarantee that it hadn’t been found and patched up since she’d last had the chance to be on the other side of the walls. She pulled out some rope, and a weird looking gun. James furrowed his eyebrows. “What are you doing? We’re supposed to be the heroes! We’re not supposed to shoot people!” He was pretty sure that if he ever killed anyone again, it would be something that he would never be able to come back from. 

Torunn snorted, and shook her head. “It’s a grappling hook, doofus. Trying to get in the first couple of floors would just be suicide. They’re the most commonly watched because the Avengers are always afraid of random civilians with an urge for justice, or squatters or something, will try to break in. Of course, the roof and all of the residential floors are heavily guarded as well, which is why we need to start somewhere in the middle, and then work our way up or down from there.”

“Impressive work. It’s hard to believe that grappling hooks are even real outside of bad cartoons, but if it really does what it’s supposed to, then I’m not going to say no to it.”

“Of course you’re not.” Torunn leaned back, and held her arm out as she aimed the grappling hook up. She squeezed one eye shut for a more precise shot, and then glanced back at James. “This might be a bit loud. Did you make sure that those distractions were properly set up like I told you?” James nodded, and reached into his pocket to grab the little remote. They’d set up some sparklers to make noise, but had propped them up in buckets of water so that the sparks would be extinguished as soon as they fell. 

James pressed the button to set them off, and could hear the crackling and hissing of the sparklers. They hoped that it would be loud enough to disguise the sound of their break in, but not so loud that it would draw any of the Avengers outside. Then Torunn fired off her grappling hook, which flew up to just below the midpoint of the building, and smashed into the glass window there. She whispered for James to hurry up, and then began scaling the building with the help of the dangling rope.

Grateful for how in shape this body was, and the fact that he’d thought to wear gloves, James hurried up after her. Once they were inside, they grabbed the window and coiled up the entire thing to put into James’ little backpack, and then he pulled out small plastic container. They had just planned on using a rock at first, but then a bird had flown straight into the living room window and died. It was gross to put it down on the ground now, but hopefully the Avengers would accept that the bird broke the glass, but died trying.

With that taken care of, the two of them hurried away from the scene of the crime. Unlike in James’ world, there were no security in the building, because the Avengers didn’t trust many outsiders, and because they were more than capable of handling any intruders, thanks to the fact that they weren’t always out being distracted by their crime fighting jobs. Luckily for James and Torunn, it meant that the response time to the break in would be slower than James was used to, since the Avengers would all have to come down from whichever upper floors they occupied.

They hurried on, going down. At first James had toyed with the possibility that if Tony was in the tower, he’d be held up on the higher floors, but then he’d dismissed the idea. If the Avengers really didn’t like him, then they wouldn’t want him anywhere that they would have to see him all the time. But the tower still seemed like the most likely hiding place, because they would need to keep him somewhere secure, and somewhere close to them, in order to get new tech out of him whenever they felt like it.

Even though the building had a lot of floors- and none of them could be written off as company floors thanks to the fact that Stark Industries had gone out of business soon after Tony’s initial disappearance- Torunn and James had agreed that it was best to stick together. It would take longer to explore the entire building, but there was safety in numbers, and James was man enough to admit that there’s no way he’d make it through a fight against the Avengers on his own. 

There wasn’t really any good way of knowing where to begin, so they hoped that just moving quickly would give them enough time to look everywhere, but James knew that that wasn’t very likely. Even though most of the floors seemed eerie and abandoned, they still had lots of stuff in them, and weren’t giant empty rooms. It made it a lot harder to navigate. “This place is an even bigger mess than the way I remember,” James muttered.

Torunn rolled her eyes, and kept moving forward, though she did pause for a moment to press a finger to her lips. James sighed, but he knew that she was right, and that it was safest for them to keep quiet unless something major happened. 

To be perfectly honest, James was a little surprised that in the entire time they’d been in the tower, no alarms had gone off, and no angry supervillains had charged after them to start attacking. He’d say that it felt like a trap, except he knew for a fact that Torunn was a hero in this world, and had absolutely no reason to try trapping James at all. And there was no one else who knew that they had planned to break in today. Maybe he was just being paranoid. It wasn’t that hard to feel crazy when walking through a place that felt like something out of a horror movie, especially when James was used to said place always feeling lively and full of people. Full of good people, that is.

It felt like they had been searching for hours, trying to go through every nook and cranny, and there was quite a lot of those. But James was determined to do this. Part of it was about caring about Tony, and knowing that the man deserved a lot better than to be locked away in his own tower, forced to produce tech for a group of villains. But he couldn’t deny that part of it was because he thought that maybe if he helped rescue Tony here, it would be proof that he wasn’t a bad guy. Of course, none of his real family members would know about this, and when he got home they probably wouldn’t suddenly decide to let him back out in the field again, but it would make him feel better. And maybe it would get Torunn to like him more too, if she knew that killing people wasn’t all he was good for. And he was bound to make Steve happy if he could help his dad get back his long lost best friend, but he could only do any of that if he was able to get Tony’s help right now. So there were really a lot of reasons that made it logical to rescue Tony.

While he was in the middle of thinking about everything, Torunn elbowed him gently in the gut, or at least gently for an Asgardian. “I don’t think we’re going to succeed at this today,” she whispered. “It might be in our best interest to leave now and come back some other time. Plus I’m getting kind of a weird vibe from this place.”

James narrowed his eyes in concern. “I don’t want to leave, but I’ve been getting a weird feeling too. If it was just me, I might ignore it, but both of our instincts can’t be that wrong at the same time. Come on, let’s find the easiest place to get out of here.”

He and Torunn started hurrying to the nearest outside window, when they heard the sound of someone clearing their throat behind him. James froze in place, and then slowly turned around, unable to ignore the feeling of dread in his stomach. Peter was standing in the doorway to the room, leaning his hip up against the doorframe, with his arms crossed over his chest and one eyebrow raised. “And what exactly is going on here?”

James opened his mouth to speak, since he figured that the friendship Jim and Peter shared would be enough to talk his way out of this, but Torunn pushed past James to stand in front of him, and she took on a pose that meant she was ready to spring and attack at a moment’s notice. “Peter. Shouldn’t you be out snatching purses from old ladies in back alleyways right about now?”

Peter shrugged. “I’m not a total moron. In fact, I’m actually pretty smart. Did you think I wasn’t going to make any connections when James was asking all about Stark Sr, and then asked for your phone number?”

Torunn sighed, but her muscles only got more tense. “Yeah, he’s kind of an idiot. In his defense, he’s technically still just a kid, regardless of what he looks like at the moment. But we’re your two closest friends, so just let us leave, and I swear I’ll never ask you for anything again.” When Peter didn’t answer immediately, Torunn barreled on. “You can even tell them that I broke in, but don’t mention that James was here.”

Peter narrowed his eyes, and pulled away from the wall, though he didn’t actually move any closer to the intruders. “You are one of my closest friends, but he’s not. He’s just some placeholder until the real James Rogers gets back here. I don’t have any obligations towards him right now. And the proof that he’s not even close to being our James is the fact that it was his idea to break in here, wasn’t it? You both should have just left well enough alone.”

Even though James was admittedly a bit frightened, he wasn’t going to cower behind Torunn forever. He moved so that he was standing next to her, and he could imagine that she would have given him a brief worried glance if it weren’t for the fact that she was keeping her eyes strictly glued to Peter. James cleared his throat once. “Look, maybe this is none of my business, but if there’s someone being held against his will, then it’s my job as a hero to rescue him.”

Peter snorted. “You’re not exactly what I would call hero material. Or are you forgetting that you told me about the fact that you’ve got a higher kill count than me?”

It was obvious that Torunn was startled by that bit of information, but she was good at what she did, and still refused to take her eyes off of Peter because he was possibly a threat at the moment. “Do you really think that he’s wrong? You have no right to just keep Tony Stark. I didn’t even know him by name because of the way you ensured he’d be written out of history, and it isn’t right. You need to be able to see that. I know that you consider yourself one of the bad guys, but you’re not a bad person, Peter. You’ve never done anything that you can’t come back from. I know that we’ve gone for years on a truce where we never bugged each other about our chosen careers, but right now, I’m afraid that it’s something I just have to do.”

Peter looked genuinely conflicted about what to do, and he looked down at the floor for a moment. “I can’t let you go around doling out justice wherever you think that it’s necessary. But I can just let you leave now, no harm done. None of us ever talk about this again, and no one has to get hurt.”

Torunn nodded. “Thank you.” She finally looked over at James, and it was hard to tell what she was thinking at the moment. “You go on ahead. There’s something important that I need to discuss with Peter.”

James was quick to do as Torunn asked. It was the least he could do after dragging her into this, and potentially getting her family to hate her even more than they already did. But even as he shuffled out of the room, the bad feeling in his stomach remained, and he hoped that everything was going to be okay.


	16. Heroes

It definitely didn’t escape Torunn’s notice that James hardly paid any attention at all to the movie that they’d settled on watching. Well, it hadn’t taken much work to choose something, actually, since James had nodded in agreement to the first suggestion Torunn made. And she’d actually been looking forward to seeing this one, but had always been too busy with everything else to actually get around to it. So she figured that an interesting movie would be enough to keep her mind off of the fact that she was on a date with James Rogers of all people.

Unfortunately, she quickly got distracted by the feeling of someone staring at her intensely, and she glanced over to see James looking at her. She narrowed her eyes, and spoke in a soft whisper to avoid disturbing the other movie goers. “What? Do I have something on my face?” She knew that that wasn’t the case, but it would hopefully serve to give James an out, and to embarrass him enough to make him look away.

But Torunn had been foolish to assume that this James had any shame. He responded back in an equally soft whisper. “I’ve seen this movie before.”

She frowned. “Well you’ve seen me before too, so I don’t know what you’re doing staring at me like a creep.”

He arched one eyebrow. “I’m not even allowed to bask in my girlfriend’s beauty?”

Torunn shrugged. “Whatever. Just don’t go thinking that you’re going to be able to sweet talk your way into getting a kiss from me.” She couldn’t see any sign of disappointment on James’ face, which meant that he probably really hadn’t been expecting a kiss from her. She cleared her throat softly, and then shoved her empty popcorn bucket into James’ lap. Between his increased metabolism and the fact that she was Asgardian, they could both easily eat a lot, and had each gotten their own large container of popcorn. “I’m all out. Get me more.” She reached into her pocket to pull out her wallet, since she knew that James didn’t have any money, and Steve had quickly decided not to give him access to the real James’ bank account. 

James bowed his head down once as he stacked the two empty popcorn containers. “Of course.” He plucked the cash out of her hand, and then got up and left the room. At least this would give her a couple of minutes to watch the movie without any distractions. Though she was pretty sure that she’d missed at least a couple of important scenes, because she had absolutely no idea what was going on. The two main characters were fighting, even though they’d been so chummy just a few minutes ago. She sighed at the thought that she’d have to come back by herself some other time. Or with her current schedule, it seemed more likely that she’d have to wait for it to come out on chip. 

James returned quickly, and handed over the popcorn, along with a box of junior mints. “Do you like them still?”

She did have a certain fondness for junior mints, but only a crazy person would think that combining minty tastes and buttery tastes would be a good idea. “Uh, I guess. But they’re kinda clashing flavors, don’t you think?”

James shrugged. “I’ve seen you eat both at the same time. Don’t worry, I won’t judge you. I thought it was endearing.”

Torunn frowned. “That wasn’t me.” Then she turned her head so that she was looking directly at the screen. It wasn’t like she’d really wanted to come on this date with James in the first place, but somehow it hadn’t occurred to her that James didn’t want to go on a date with her either. No matter what he said, he wanted the Torunn that he knew from his world. Even if they were both heroes, they were still different people. 

Out of the corner of her eye, she could see James open his mouth, and then close it without saying anything. She held her breath until he finally turned to focus on the movie as well, and then she slumped back in her seat. What a disaster of a date. 

When the movie was finally over, Torunn felt simultaneously relieved, because she hadn’t been able to really pay attention throughout out, and dreadful, because now there was no excuse to not talk to James. “Want to go to dinner? You’d have to pay, but I’d like to spend more time with you.” He didn’t even sound remotely nervous about asking her to somewhere else he wouldn’t be able to pay for. Though it was fair of her to buy the movie tickets and snacks since she’d been the one who suggested going to a movie.

There was no decent explanation that would get her out of this, unfortunately. If she was Midgardian, she’d easily be able to say that two entire large buckets of popcorn had filled her up, but that wasn’t the case, and James at least knew enough about her to be able to figure out that much. “Sure. I wanted to talk to you anyways.”

It was obvious from the look on James’ face that he had no idea what to expect from a talk with Torunn, but she refused to elaborate for the moment. She needed time to put her thoughts together so that they wouldn’t sound like a jumbled mess out loud. Maybe if she figured out a good way to explain things, it would get her out of this whole dating business. If it wasn’t something either of them wanted, then it didn’t make sense to continue on with it.

They walked to a nearby pizza place, since Torunn wasn’t in the mood for anywhere fancy, and being the one with the money meant that she got to choose where they would eat. She went up to the counter to order two large meat lovers pizzas, and then slid into one of the vinyl red booths. James slid into the seat across from her. “Some things never change. I mean, these places have basically all looked the same since the eighties, and trust me, they’ll stick look the same another ten years from now.” 

Torunn shrugged. “I guess they figured that there was no point in messing with something worked.” She sighed, and then continued. “Speaking of things working… we aren’t going to be one of them.” She hurried on before James could say anything. “I mean, you already know that I only agreed to this dating thing because you said it was the only way you’d cooperate. But whether you’ve realized it yet or not, you’re not into it either. You’re not into me.”

James immediately shook his head. “That’s the furthest thing possible from the truth! Being with you is like a dream come true, Torunn.” He reached across the table to rest his hand on top of Torunn’s.

She gently pulled her hands away, and rested them on her lap. “Look, you might think that, but the truth is that dating the Torunn from your universe is what you really want. And there’s no way you could ever convince me that I’m the same as her. Our circumstances have been too different to not shape us into different people. And that means that I’m not actually the person you want to be with. Dating me is only going to make you miserable because of the constant reminder of how you aren’t dating her. The more you notice our differences, the more you’re going to dislike me.”

James shook his head again, looking distressed. It made him look more similar to the James she knew than anything else he’d done since they’d met. “That isn’t true, Torunn. Maybe you aren’t exactly identical, but I like all the parts of you, even if there are some that are a bit different than what I’m used to. But because I love you, it’ll be easy to get used to everything about you-”

“You don’t love me,” she interrupted. She felt too tired to be bothered to shout at him, and she didn’t want to make a scene in public. But it was frustrating that James didn’t seem to understand what she was saying. “You’re in love with your Torunn. And that’s fine, but I must look like some bad copy in comparison, and it isn’t fair to either of us to continue with this. Believe it or not, I’d like for you to be happy. And being with me isn’t going to make you happy.” She hesitated before adding, “Plus you can’t deny that it’s a little creepy for you to want to date someone who’s so much younger than you, and a minor.”

James gave her a very long look without blinking, before he finally nodded once and looked away. “You’re right. As much as I hate to admit it. You look just like her, and so many things about you are the same, but you’re not the other Torunn anymore than I’m this James.”

Torunn offered up her most sympathetic look. “I’m sorry that you can’t be with her right now. Will you still stick around and help us figure out a way to swap you and this James back?” 

He nodded again. “I guess I feel a bit obligated to do that.”

Torunn smiled. “That’s a good thing. You should want to get home to your world, even if it is a messed up version of this one. It’s the world where you have a job that you like, and friends you care about, and the love of your life.” She hesitated for a moment before adding, “You should try talking to her about your feelings. You never know what might happen.”

James winced, and there was a slightly guilty look on his face. “Ah, about that. Maybe I should have mentioned it earlier, but I kind of already have a girlfriend. Her name is Rin, and since we haven’t even kissed, I wouldn’t really consider myself a cheater, but I’m not sure how to go about, well, any of this. I told her about being in love with my Torunn years ago, but I also kind of promised not to ever talk about Torunn in front of her again. Now I’m in an awkward situation. If I break up with Rin and then it turns out that Torunn doesn’t return my feelings, then I won’t have anyone.”

Torunn narrowed her eyes and crossed her arms over her chest. “If you’ve been in love with your Torunn all this time, then it makes you a dick for dating this Rin woman. It isn’t fair to her to be with someone who’s not into her.”

James rolled his eyes, and opened his mouth, but didn’t say anything as their pizzas were put down on the table. Once the employee walked away, James spoke. “It’s not that I’m not into her. I mean, she’s hot, and funny, and a really, really good cook. I have fun with her, and the sex is always good.” 

Torunn cringed. “Too much information,” she muttered.

“She’s the one who went after me, and decided to stay even after I told her about you. Things are good with her.”

Torunn quickly ate a slice of her pizza before responding. “You mean that things are safe with her. She could be the most amazing woman in every universe that exists, but there’s no good reason to stay with someone for years when you don’t love them. You’re just too afraid to go for what you actually want, and you’d rather go for the person who you know loves you than the one that you love.”

James frowned. “It’s not like that.” But the uncertain tone to his voice made it pretty clear that he was well aware of what it was like. “Things are more complicated than you’re making them out to be.”

“No they’re not. You’re just a coward. I guess that means that I’ve officially figured out the biggest difference between you and my James.” She stood up abruptly, grabbed the thin cardboard tray that the pizza had been served on, and marched outside. The food had already been paid for, and she knew that James was capable of finding his own way home, so she didn’t feel bad about abandoning him. 

She wandered around as she finished eating her pizza, and then eventually returned to the tower. She hadn’t seen anyone else around, and decided that she was glad for that because she wasn’t in the mood to talk to anyone. As she headed up to her room, she decided to veer off to the communal kitchen to make herself some of the special Asgardian tea that Thor had had delivered to her every year. It never failed to soothe her nerves, and helped her sleep better. It reminded her of home, even if she’d never actually been to Asgard. 

It wasn’t that late, but the light in the kitchen was off, so she was surprised- once she turned it on- that there was someone perched on the counter. Tony had a turned off tablet in his hand, and was slumped back against the wall, eyes closed. She smiled to herself as she took in the sight. The resident billionaire and inventor really needed to learn how to take care of himself. He’d probably passed out after two or three days of no sleep, and had come to the kitchen for coffee to keep himself awake. Of course he’d gotten distracted before he could get to the coffee. This wasn’t even close to the first time Torunn had witnessed something like this happen with the man. 

She walked over to him, and gently nudged at his knee, not wanting to startle him too badly. “Hey, wake up. I don’t want to discourage you from sleeping or anything, but it would probably be a lot easier on your back if you did it in a real bed.”

Tony cracked his eyes open, and then let out a soft groan before opening them the rest of the way. “Kid Thor. How was your date?”

Torunn sighed. “Not that amazing. James from the other world is kind of a dick.”

Tony shrugged. “James from this world is kind of a dick too.”

Torunn snorted. “Are you even allowed to say that? You’re kind of his dad.”

Tony shrugged again, and then he hopped down from the counter, still clutching his tablet. “That’s exactly why I’m allowed to say it.”

“So what kinds of things to say about me behind my back, since you’re sort of my dad too?” Without either of her biological parents around to watch over her for more than a couple of days a year, Torunn had been raised by the Avengers as a whole, though Tony’s name was the one officially on her adoption records. And even though James had been raised by both of his parents, there had been an incident when James was only about a year old, and both Natalia and Steve had been presumed dead, so Tony had adopted him. Once it turned out that they were alive, no one ever got around to changing the records. 

Tony laughed. “I would never say anything about you behind your back. Other than how wonderful and perfect you are, of course. I suppose you take after your father in that regard.” Torunn was about to point out that she didn’t think Thor was all that perfect, but Tony wasn’t finished yet. “I guess it’s a case of proximity rubbing off on you more than genetics.”

Torunn gave Tony a gentle hug, and then pulled away so that he could see the way she rolled her eyes. “You’re ridiculous. Now go to bed.”

“Hey- who’s whose parent here?” he grumbled. But he shuffled out of the kitchen without grabbing anything caffeinated first, which Torunn considered a win. Then she reached into the cabinet to pull out a tea box. She never had to worry about anyone else taking any and depleting her limited supply. Not only did everyone in the tower know that the tea was important to Torunn, but they also couldn’t actually drink the stuff without getting horribly sick. Tony loved to remind her of how quickly the Avengers had learned to keep their hands off the tea when Torunn was still just a baby. 

It didn’t take too long to brew herself a cup, nice and dark so that it would be extra flavorful, and then she went to her room. She’d check on James in the morning to make sure that he was okay, but she didn’t have to worry about him taking off. He’d already told her that he’d stick around, and he didn’t strike her as the dishonest type. 

Torunn changed into her pajamas, and curled up under her blankets. She cradled her mug in her hands, not bothered by the heat directly pressed against her hands. Just one of the many benefits to being Asgardian. She sipped her tea, and let out a soft sigh. She decided that once everything was made right with the world again, she’d have to talk to her James. Find out if it was true that he was in love with her. She knew for sure that she wasn’t in love with him in return, but she couldn’t deny that she missed him. And not just in the past week. She’d been distant with him all year, unable to face him after everything that had happened. But maybe it was time to finally move forward from that, and see what happened from there.


	17. Chapter 17

Once James was standing outside of the tower, he wasn’t really sure what he was supposed to be doing. Should he just hurry back to his and Peter’s apartment to wait for Torunn there? Or should he wait for her where he was standing? He wasn’t sure what exactly she hoped to gain by staying to talk to Peter. If it were up to James, as soon as Peter had given them both permission to leave, they’d have run out of there. 

But there was still so much about this world that James didn’t understand, and suspected that he never would. Torunn and Peter had been best friends for years, and there could be all kinds of things between them that they would want to talk about. But that didn’t make James feel any better about the situation. 

He crossed his arms over his chest and leaned back against the tower wall. He glanced over to the door every few seconds, not feeling at all calm. He wasn’t sure what to do. Should he go back inside to get Torunn? No, he couldn’t do that. She was a lot stronger than him if it came down to a physical fight, and she’d asked to be left there, which meant that James had to respect her choice, as much as he burned to do something to help.

He wasn’t even sure how long had passed before Torunn finally slipped out of the small back door. She looked tired for a few seconds, and then just seemed startled to see James standing there. “You waited for me?”

James shrugged. “Didn’t feel right to just leave you behind. You feel like letting me in on what exactly you needed to talk to Peter about in private?”

The tired look returned to her face, and her shoulders slumped down. “I wanted it to be a private conversation for a reason, James. But don’t worry. I’m not just going to give up on Stark. But even though Peter isn’t going to report this to anyone, at least he’s going to be on edge for a while. We’re going to have to wait a bit until he lets his guard down again, or until he isn’t in the tower.”

James nodded. “I know. And we’ll have to think of a new way to get in. There’s no way that the same distraction tactic will work twice in a row, even if we did wait around for a couple of weeks.” He paused for a minute to quickly look up and down Torunn’s entire self, though he was only doing it to make sure she wasn’t hurt. “Are you okay?”

Torunn nodded. “Yeah, I’m fine. Why wouldn’t I be? Peter’s my best friend. He would never hurt me,” she told him with a small laugh. “Now we should probably split here. We’ll talk again later, okay?”

All of James’ instincts were screaming for him to stay by Torunn’s side, but he wasn’t the one with the ability to detect when bad stuff was going to happen. James paused for a moment to think about Peter’s ‘spidey sense’. It was meant to help Peter know when bad things were about to happen, but in this universe, Peter was one of those bad things, so was his sense always going off, or did it focus on detecting heroes in the area? It would be interesting to find out. Though James had the feeling that the next time he saw Peter at their apartment was going to be pretty awkward, all things considered.

Anyways, the point was that even though James didn’t think he should leave, he knew that he had no right to argue with Torunn about this, and he had to remind himself again about the fact that she was practically indestructible and could kick almost anyone’s ass in a fight. So he nodded in agreement, but before walking away, he leaned forward to pull her into a hug. 

It was a bit awkward, but after just a couple of seconds, Torunn reached up to return the hug. “It’s really great to get to know you like this, James. I’m just sorry that it took some dimension hopping to get us to this point. I’ll see you around, okay? Don’t worry about me so much.”

Despite her assurance that they’d see each other again, something about her tone sounded so final that it made James’ stomach twist up in knots, and he desperately hoped that she wasn’t going to do anything stupid. Not that he was in a position to to judge other people for reckless decisions, considering what he’d done to get benched from the team in the first place, back in his own universe.

He started walking away, though he couldn’t resist the urge to glance back once he got to the end of the street to try and see Torunn again. She was already out of sight, and James couldn’t help wondering where she had gone. Then he faced front again and took a deep breath in before slowly letting it out. He started heading back towards the apartment, and tried to get his mind off of Torunn. But just like every other time in his life when he’d tried that, it absolutely did not work.

,,,

James woke up with a soft groan. His head had the ache that came with too little sleep, but the shades in his room were crooked to the side, letting the light stream in directly onto his face. Knowing that trying to roll over and go back to sleep would be futile, he got up and headed out of his room. 

He felt cautious as soon as he stepped into the hallway, even though his room wasn’t technically any safer if Peter was in the mood to retaliate against him. He shuffled into the kitchen to make some coffee, hoping that the bitter taste and the caffeine would help to wake him up and keep him awake. 

As soon as he heard footsteps, James could feel all of his muscles tensing up in preparation for a fight that he did not want to participate in. He and the Peter of his own world may not have gotten along, but despite this Peter’s villainy, he was actually a pretty cool guy, and James didn’t want to fight him if he didn’t have to. And there was the unfortunate fact that Peter could undoubtedly kick Peter’s ass. Whatever diluted super soldier serum ran through James’ veins was nowhere near enough to give him a chance against people with actual super strength, even with all of his training.

James quickly turned around, not wanting to have his back to a potential enemy, but then he furrowed his eyebrows in confusion when he saw the cheerful expression on Peter’s face. And it wasn’t the manic cheeriness that came with villains in the mood for murder, it was just regular old cheerfulness. James had absolutely no idea how to interpret that. “Good morning?”

Peter nodded. “Very good indeed.” He walked right up to James and clapped his hand to his shoulder. “Already got the coffee going? Good man.”

James blinked a few times in confusion, then he started to open his mouth to ask what the hell was going on before it occurred to him that that would go against Peter’s idea of all of them just forgetting about last night. But clearly something had happened, and James couldn’t stop himself from thinking through the many possibilities. “Someone’s in a good mood this morning,” he tried hesitantly.

Peter reached past James to grab a mug and stick it under the spout of the coffee machine before pressing the little button. Then he backed away while his mug was being filled. “I guess it’s true what they say, about good things coming to those who wait. I have waited a very long time, and I’ve finally gotten a good thing.”

James thought that he might be sick. “Did Torunn-?” But he wasn’t sure how to actually finish that question without both insulting Torunn and making himself nauseous. 

Peter quickly shook his head, nose wrinkled up. “No! We are best friends, basically like brother and sister!” The honesty in Peter’s voice made James’ shoulders slump down in relief. Of course he wouldn’t be able to say anything even if Torunn and Peter had gotten together, but that wouldn’t stop him from feeling hurt and upset. He let out a heavy sigh. “What did Torunn want to talk to you about last night?”

Peter frowned, and reached up to scratch lightly at the back of his neck. “Nothing that she’d want me to share with you, I know that much. She wouldn’t have asked you to leave if she thought that it was something you should be in on. It’s nothing- nothing that you should worry about, James. No matter what happens, nothing will change the fact that Torunn is really a hero at heart.”

James furrowed his eyebrows at the crypticness of that statement, but instead of waiting around to answer any more questions, Peter grabbed his full mug and hurried away to his own room. And James knew that he had to respect the privacy of their separate rooms if he wanted Peter to keep doing the same for him. 

Once Peter was out of the room, James grabbed an empty mug for himself and put it down in front of the coffee maker. He wanted to know what was going on, but he was smart enough to realize that he probably wasn’t going to get anything if he tried to push, since both Peter and Torunn had already agreed to the idea of forgetting about last night.

He gulped down his coffee, barely even aware of the fact that it was still hot enough to scald the back of his throat as he drank it. Then he went back to his room to get dressed and ready for the day. Not that he was really sure what he wanted to do for the day. He knew that this James had to have a job to be able to afford to pay rent for this pretty nice apartment, and to keep a girlfriend like the one that this James had. 

But he wasn’t even sure what that job might be, and if anyone had mentioned it, then it wasn’t something he could recall at the moment. And besides that, James doubted that he had whatever skills were required for a job, since he was still just a teenager in his own world, and hadn’t gone through college yet, or anything like that. He couldn’t imagine actually getting a job, since he’d figured that he’d just stay with the Avengers and be a superhero funded by Tony forever. Maybe it made him sound dumb to assume something like that, but he’d never had any reason to think otherwise. 

He sank down onto his bed, and looked down at himself. He didn’t want to get so used to being in this world that he was okay with heading off to work and doing normal things. He didn’t want this place to become his new normal. He just wanted to go home, to a world where he could talk to his Torunn again. And maybe have a civil conversation with his Peter for once to find out if the guy was actually okay. And to talk to his parents without his dad being dead and his mom looking like she was about to kill him. He just wanted to go home. He hated that that was so much to ask for, though. 

James sat there for a while before he finally managed to propel himself to his feet, and then he paced around his bedroom for a few more minutes before actually leaving. He couldn’t just hang around inside all day. He left the apartment, not bothering to say anything to Peter as he left. He wasn’t even sure what he’d say if he saw his roommate.

Outside, everything was just as busy as it ever was during the day in this city. Even if there were probably even more people here now than there were in James’ time, he still knew that this was a comforting feeling in the familiarity of it. Then he passed by a news stand (somewhat surprised that those even still existed) and noticed that there were people flocked all around it, and the vendor seemed pleased to be selling his papers like there was no tomorrow. 

James pushed past a few people in the crowd until he was able to see the huge headlines running across the front page of an opened paper. ‘Tony Stark Back From Dead!’ was the loudly exclaimed big news, along with a picture of Tony, more haggard than James remembered him, with a shock blanket around his shoulders. The picture had clearly taken the man by surprise, based on the look on his face and the fact that the edges of the photo were blurry. 

Without any hesitation, James turned around and sprinted back to the apartment, throwing the front door open with a lot more force than necessary. He rushed to Peter’s room, and didn’t even knock before shoving at the door and stomping inside. “What the hell is going on?”

Peter looked up from where he’d been typing on his laptop, and arched one eyebrow, giving James a look like he was somehow the crazy one here. “Like in the world in general, or…?”

James clenched his jaw. “The day after we break into the tower to rescue Tony Stark, and then Torunn insists on having a private chat with you, suddenly he’s back in the public eye.” He hadn’t gotten the chance to look at any actual articles, but he assumed that Tony would have told everyone he was being held captive by the Avengers. Everyone already knew that they were the villains, and would most likely have no trouble believing such a thing. “There’s no way in hell that this kind of a thing is just a coincidence.”

Peter shrugged, though he did look slightly uncomfortable as he closed his laptop and set it off to the side. “Look, James, you’re technically just a kid, and you really don’t need to be getting yourself involved in things that are so far above your head. You know that I’m a villain, but that doesn’t automatically mean that I’m a bad guy, and sometimes I’m going to do a favor for a friend. Let’s just leave it at that, okay?”

If this were about anybody else, James probably would just walk away and leave at that. Be grateful that Tony was alive and free and not push the matter any further. But this was Torunn they were talking about, and she’d obviously said something to convince Peter to free Tony at the risk of the wrath of the rest of the Avengers. “What did Torunn give you in exchange for Stark’s freedom?”

Peter stood up slowly and deliberately, like he was trying to avoid spooking a wild animal. “It doesn’t matter, James. Whatever happened is between her and me, and has absolutely nothing to do with you. You’re just going to go back to your own world as soon as you can anyways, right, so what’s the point in trying to get so invested in the things happening around here? You’re a lot better off just enjoying the time you have here, pretending like you’re on some fancy vacation, and leaving all of the heavy thinking to the adults here.”

James stomped over to Peter so that they were standing just inches apart. “Tell me what the hell you made Torunn agree to.”

“Like I said before, just keep in mind that she’s a true hero at heart, and don’t think about anything else. And don’t forget that if she wanted you to know what’s going on, she would have told you herself. She’s my best friend, and I’m not going to go around talking about her to any random person who asks about her.”

James narrowed his eyes. “I’m not just some random person. I’m-” but he couldn’t finish the statement because he wasn’t really sure what he could say about his relation to Torunn. She meant so much to him, but he had no way of putting any of those things into words, especially when talking about a Torunn that wasn’t even really the one that he knew.

Peter snorted. “What, because you’re an asshole and you have wet dreams about her? That doesn’t give you the right to know about her-”

James didn’t want to hear anything else Peter had to say, and even though he knew that it wouldn’t be very convincing in getting Peter to cooperate, it did feel good to just sucker punch him in the face. Even with Peter’s healing factor, he was going to sport a black eye for at least a day. “You’re a dick. Torunn deserves a way better best friend than you. And whatever it is that you’re going to try and make her do, I’m going to stop you.”

Peter rolled his eyes, not looking particularly bothered by the hit. “This is Torunn we’re talking about. Nobody can make her do anything that she doesn’t want to do. And she’s an honorable person, which means that she’s going to hold up her end of the bargain. You’re the one who told her about Stark and got her heroics revving. You’re the one who’s done nothing but mess with normality of this world since you got here. So whatever happens next is entirely on you.”

Well that definitely didn’t sound ominous at all. James frowned, and got himself ready to throw another punch, though he knew he’d only get so many free shots before Peter started hitting back, and that would definitely hurt. “What’s going to happen next?” There was a sinking feeling in his stomach, but he couldn’t even begin to guess at what kind of deal Torunn had made. Her and Peter were already best friends, and she wasn’t independently wealthy, and it wasn’t about sex, so he had no idea what Peter could want from her. 

And Peter was stubborn, simply shrugging his shoulders in response to James’ question. “Guess we’ll both find out soon enough. Now if you don’t mind, please leave my room.”

It’s not like James was going to be able to get anything else out of Peter, so he left the room and headed back to the living room, feeling slightly numb. Whatever was going to happen next definitely wasn’t going to be good, and Peter was right about it being partially James’ fault. Though he knew that Peter was also right about the fact that no one could actually force Torunn to do anything, and that she probably wouldn’t want James blaming himself. It would be better if he could find a way to get her out of this situation 

He sat down on the couch and turned on the television, hoping to find some mindless thing to try and distract himself from what was going on. The news was the channel that was already on, and he was about to change it, when he realized that the picture on screen was of Torunn in her hero uniform, and he leaned forward and turned up the volume of the TV. 

_“-Lightning was witnessed leaving the scene with several bags in hand. And now this city is left to wonder if we’ve lost yet another hero. But instead of mourning as a casket is lowered into the ground, we are mourning as a once trusted figure turns against the people as she very publicly asked the Avengers to accept her as one of their own.”_


	18. Chapter 18

James stared at the screen in shock, hoping that he’d just somehow misunderstood everything that the reporter had just said. But even as he continued to desperately look at the television, he knew that he hadn’t misheard anything. Torunn was such a goddamn hero that she was willing to become a villain in order to save an innocent man, and James wasn’t even sure where to begin unpacking just how unfair that was. 

If Torunn was a villain now, did that mean that she was no longer one of the constants between the two worlds? Or should she still be considered a hero because she was doing this for the sake of saving someone who deserved to be saved? From what James could tell, she’d gone and robbed a bank, but no one had been hurt in the robbery. Of course that didn’t make it okay, but James really didn’t have any moral high ground to stand on, considering his own past. 

Was there a certain amount of crimes that Torunn could commit before they outweighed all the good she’d ever done? Or was becoming a villain something that automatically outweighed her heroics no matter what? And what if the Avengers just attacked her instead of accepting her back? It was no secret that Natalia despised Torunn because of Steve’s death, and he doubted that a few robberies would sway her opinion. 

James slumped back against the couch, and let out a tired sigh. Was there even anything that he could do to fix things now? Like Peter had said, Torunn was too honorable to not hold up her end of a bargain. Of course Tony would be under greater security now, but even so, if Torunn broke her word, he had little doubt in the Avengers’ ability to snatch the man back up again.

This whole situation was such a mess. And it wasn’t even just about Torunn or the Avengers. The heroes and villains had all agreed to a semi-truce in order to stop the entire planet from being annihilated, but Torunn was the one who’d been put in charge of leading the efforts, for both groups. The heroes had already found her untrustworthy before, despite how much she did for the people, but were willing to put aside their differences for the sake of the world. With such a blatant side change, though, the heroes would no doubt think that they’d been played, and would potentially accuse Torunn of having been a villain the entire time. They’d trust her even less than the other villains. And the other villains would most likely think this was some kind of trick so that Torunn could get close enough to arrest them, and they would trust her less than before as well. The fate of the entire world was at stake, but a single woman’s supposed loyalties could ruin everything. 

Was this all James’ fault for wanting so badly to rescue Tony Stark? He never before would have considered it a bad thing to want to help someone, but he’d also never expected everything to come down to weighing up Tony Stark versus the entire world. Of course Tony was worth a lot more than the average man, but nobody was worth nine billion people. 

Torunn was too honorable for her own good, but it meant that she also thought the best of the people she worked with, and believed that they would be honorable as well. If the Avengers took back Tony, then Torunn would think Peter hadn’t upheld his end of the deal, and she wouldn’t have to be a villain anymore. It could all be chalked off as some big misunderstanding, especially if it all happened sooner rather than later.

But that would mean handing Tony right back over to the wolves he’d just gotten away from. He’d spent too many years in captivity already, and while he was there he had created weapons and tools and armor that had helped the Avengers evade capture and continue with their evil-doing for so long. Tony didn’t deserve to be locked away and forced to create things against his will, and the Avengers didn’t deserve to have a constant supply of new equipment that only made them more and more dangerous. But the whole world didn’t deserve to be destroyed because no one had been able to believe in Torunn. 

James abruptly stood up, and turned the TV off, not wanting to listen to all the speculation and lies being told about Torunn. There were already too many people saying that they’d suspected she was up to no good since she’d first debuted as a hero, even though that was obviously total bull. 

One thing James knew for sure was that whatever did end up happening, he couldn’t be the one solely responsible for deciding. Ideally, he’d just go and talk to Tony himself, but he knew that no security in their right mind would let him in, considering his ties to the Avengers, and his choice in roommate. And he didn’t think that Torunn would want to talk right now. Not based on the finality of their goodbyes before. Not to mention the fact that she had to think Peter had broken his word for her to go back to being her heroic self.

James headed back outside, and snagged a taxi so that he could make his way to Lorna’s apartment. He felt bad for putting more on her when he was already asking so much of her, but he couldn’t think of anyone else who he would really be able to talk to about everything. There just weren’t very many people out there who would be able to truly understand what was at stake.

It didn’t take long at all to reach Lorna’s, though it was possible that that was because of how lost in thought James was throughout the cab ride. He fumblingly handed over the fare money and then hopped out of the vehicle as soon as they reached his destination, and then he made his way over to Lorna’s door after taking a moment to remind himself of which number it was. Of course it was the same apartment number as the one he’d visited many times before to see Wanda back in his own world, but right now he felt a bit too numb to really think about that. 

He thought he knocked gently on the door, barely even able to hear the noise, but the odd look on Lorna’s face when the door swung open made James think that maybe he’d pounded away louder than he’d planned. Something about his appearance must have made it clear that he wasn’t here just for a social call, and Lorna stepped aside so that he could enter her home. 

She led him to the living room so that he could settle down on the couch, and then told him to stay put while she got tea. For a moment, James wondered why Lorna didn’t just use her power to get the tea. In fact, there were a great deal of things she could probably just use her powers on to make her life easier. Maybe she just enjoyed the feeling of accomplishing things manually. Or maybe it would just be weird to have metal tea cups. 

It only took a couple of minutes for Lorna to come back with two mugs, and she set them both down onto coasters on her coffee table before sitting herself in the chair across from the couch. She leaned back and arched one eyebrow. “So? Do you plan on actually telling me why you’re here? I doubt that you came for my tea.”

James sighed before reaching out to grab the mug that was closest to him. “Have you seen the news today?” Lorna shook her head, and James leaned back. “Remember before when I was asking you about Tony Stark? Well I found him. He was being held captive by the Avengers, and Torunn and I broke into the tower to rescue him. We ended up getting caught, and Torunn cut a deal. Tony’s freedom in exchange for her- for her going full villain. It isn’t fair! Torunn is one of the best people I know, and there’s no way that it’s a coincidence that she’s a hero in both of the worlds that I’ve seen! But she’s definitely not going to go back on her word so long as Tony remains free.” He took a sip of the tea, and then grimaced at the bitter, earthy taste to it. He put the mug back down on the coaster, then looked down at his hands on his lap. 

Lorna frowned. “I’m sorry that you had to deal with that, James, but what do you want me to be able to do about it? I’m not like my sister. I’m not some all-powerful being who can change the fate of the world. All I can do is a few measly parlor tricks.”

They both knew that Lorna’s power was actually far more than that, but James didn’t bother to point out the obvious. He spoke in a low voice as he responded, well aware that he was going to sound like a child. “I just want someone to tell me what to do. Can’t there be some easy solution where everyone can walk away safe and happy? Torunn is a hero, and this world needs all the heroes it can get. But Tony is an innocent man who deserves freedom, and could even possibly help in the grand scheme of things, if he isn’t too traumatized by his time in captivity. So what do I do?”

Lorna shrugged, and James peered up through his eyelashes to see the helpless expression on the woman’s face. “I don’t know the answer here, James,” she admitted quietly. “I really wish that I could tell you the right thing to do, but truthfully, I’ve got no idea. It’s a shitty situation, but I have faith that you’ll find a way to get through it.”

There was a moment of silence before James lowered his voice to a complete whisper. “But I’m just a kid.” Maybe he was seventeen, and had been trying to get everyone to see him as an adult for years now, but it was suddenly hitting him that he wasn’t an adult yet. Wasn’t even ready to be one. Why did this decision have to rest on his shoulders? He didn’t have the proper experience or knowledge to make the right choice. “I shouldn’t even be here. I don’t want to be here. I just want to go home.” For the first time since he’d woken up in this world, James could feel all the held back tears slip out and quietly roll down his cheeks. “I just want to go home, where everything makes sense, and my parents love me, and Torunn isn’t forced to be a villain, and there’s no threat to the planet looming on the horizon, and Peter hates me, and-”

He wasn’t even sure when she’d gotten up, but Lorna was suddenly pulling him into a hug, letting James tuck his face into her shoulder, getting her sleeve damp from his crying. She rubbed comforting circles on his back, and made soft shushing noises. “Shh, don’t cry now. It’s going to be okay, James. You’re going to get home. I’m going to make sure of it. You’re right; you are just a kid. You deserve to grow up the same way any other kid does, and to make your own choices that lead you to your future. You should be in the world that makes the most sense to you. The one that you can truly call ‘home’, and the one that has your family waiting for you in it. I’m going to make sure you get back there, I promise.”

James sniffled, and stayed in the embrace for a little bit longer before finally pulling away, and reaching up to rub at his nose with the back of his sleeve. “Sorry about that. I’m not usually a crier.”

Lorna shrugged. “Everyone feels emotions. It’s not good to bottle them all up inside of you. Makes it too easy for the people around you to forget that you’re not as old as you look right now. And it makes it feel a lot worse when it does all end up coming out.”

“Did you learn that from your sister?”

Lorna snorted and shook her head. “I learned that from my own teenage years. My brother- not Pietro, my foster brother- was only a year older than me, so I had to watch my poor parents deal with both of our teenage years all at once. It was a very emotional time. A lot of things were said, and accusations were thrown, but nobody actually meant most of it. Figured out pretty quick that it would be easier to just let out how I was feeling before it could all explode out of me against my will.” 

James furrowed his eyebrows. “So you really were just raised in a normal family?”

“As normal as could be expected, all things considered. Still get together with them all every year for the holidays. My brother brings his wife, and we’ve got a few aunts and uncles who stop by. If you want to experience a so-called ‘normal family dinner’ then you’re welcome to join us for Thanksgiving.”

At first James wanted to accept, because the idea of being part of a regular family gathering sounded nice. But then it occurred to him that that would mean having to stick around this place for several more months, which seemed unacceptable. He liked Lorna and Torunn, and it was nice to know that the man he’d been named after was still alive, but he definitely didn’t plan on sticking around. He didn’t even want to stay here for another couple of weeks if he didn’t have to.

Lorna laughed at the look on James’ face. “You’re allowed to say no, I promise I won’t get offended. Those dinners are rowdy enough without you there, though if you did change your mind, I’m sure that it would be fun.”

“It’s not that.” James trusted that Lorna was telling the truth about not being offended, but he still felt like it was necessary to provide her with some kind of explanation. “It’s not that. Having dinner with your family sounds delightful. But I really do just want to get home as soon as possible.”

Lorna gave him a sympathetic smile. “I understand. Don’t worry, I already promised that I was going to make sure that you get home, and I never back out of a promise. We’re going to figure this all out, okay? Just trust me.”

Trusting wasn’t exactly something that came easily to James. Even the heroic Avengers of his world were difficult people, most of them loaded down with trust issues for miles. So even though he was close with them, family to them, he’d never really learned how to let in strangers. Though in some ways, Lorna was technically family too, right? Avengers had often included their families in events, and in his world, Pietro was an Avenger, and since Lorna was his sister, that made her and James sort of connected. 

Of course it also helped that when she spoke, the determined conviction in her voice made it very difficult to believe that she could possibly be lying to him. She sounded too earnest about everything to just be playing James for a fool, and he couldn’t imagine what she would get out of tricking him anyways. 

He gave her a lightly teasing smile. “Well, I suppose since you’re the only person willing to help me, I don’t really have much choice in the matter, do I?”

It appeared to take a moment for Lorna to realize that he was joking, and then she smiled back at him. “Oh, what a great pity for you to be stuck with me of all people.” She got back up to return to her own seat. “I suppose you’d have been much happier to have my sister here, right?”

She sounded unsure when she asked, like she really didn’t know the answer to that one. Of course James missed Wanda- or at least, his Wanda- because the two of them had been friends for years, and she’d always been the one person James felt like he could talk to about anything. Especially about things related to his family that he wouldn’t be able to share with random strangers. But there was no guarantee that the Wanda of this world would be capable of, or even willing to, play that same role. 

So he shook his head and answered honestly. “I don’t know if things would be different for me if Wanda was here right now. All I know is that you are the one who’s here, and you’ve really been here for me since I showed up on your doorstep like a crazy person. I am happy to have met you, and I’m grateful for your help.”

Lorna nodded. “I believe you.” She sighed, and then after a moment of hesitation, pulled out her phone. “Guess I’ll try and see if there’s been anymore news on Lightning since you last checked.”

The reminder of why he’d showed up here in the first place felt like having cold water splashed over him. “Why even bother?” he asked bitterly. “It’s not like that would change anything.”

Lorna shrugged. “Because I hate to make decisions without being fully informed. And I know I said I have faith in you, but you’re right about the fact that you’re still just a kid. So whatever ends up happening is going to be something that we decide together, okay?”

James gulped, and then nodded. “Okay.” It felt good to have someone so fully on his side, and James couldn’t wait to fix everything here, and then finally just go home.


	19. Chapter 19

He nodded in response to Lorna asking if he was sure that they were in the right place. Then he switched into a shrug halfway through. “I mean, I’m pretty sure. But the Tony from this world could be completely different than the Tony from my world, in which case, he’d have different preferences, and this might be the entirely wrong place to start looking for him, and-”

Lorna held up one hand. “Stop. Take a deep breath. Let it out slowly. Relax. If you think that this is the best place to start looking, then I’m not going to do anything but try and help you. Like you said, this is Stark’s life on the line, which means that he should have some say in the matter. Alright, so I know we didn’t really do much planning, so here’s my idea- I’ll do something to distract the guards while you slip inside.”

James narrowed his eyes. “And then as soon as they realize they were duped, they’ll be after me, and there’s no way they’ll let me far enough into the building to find Tony.”

“Alright, you’re right. Okay, are you wearing any metal right now? Nevermind, it wouldn’t be enough anyways. Luckily, I always carry around extra with me when I leave the house. This might hurt a bit, but I promise it won’t tear you in half.” That didn’t sound promising, but it’s not like James had any better ideas at the moment, so he reluctantly followed Lorna as they shuffled around to the back of the hotel building. “Suck your stomach in as much as you can right now. I don’t want there being any slack in the grip because I can’t risk a precision hold once you’re out of my direct eyeline.”

None of that made any sense, but James did as he was told and sucked his stomach in. It didn’t seem to make much of a difference from where he was standing, but if that was what would stop him from dying in whatever plan Lorna had just concocted, then that’s what he’d do. 

Big blobs of metal seemed to melt out from underneath Lorna’s clothes, and then it was wrapped carefully around him. Most of it went around his stomach and chest, and the remaining bits went around his upper arms. Then it all tightened enough to be just short of uncomfortable. “So what exactly is the plan here?”

Lorna grinned. “If you can’t take the elevator up, then why not use a handy little short cut? Try not to make a fool of yourself.” And then James was being lifted up into the air. As he rose up, he had to force himself not to flail around and panic because he was pretty sure it would only make Lorna’s job more difficult. She probably had to go by the feeling of the metal alone since he had gone above the tree line, which meant out of her sight. He hoped that the hotel wasn’t tall enough that he’d be pushed out of Lorna’s range only to fall to his death. That didn’t seem like a comfortable way to go.

Not that the current method of transportation was particularly fun. The metal around his chest felt like it was trying to yank him in half, and made it rather difficult to breath. And the metal around his arms felt like it was constantly about to yank his shoulders out of their sockets. But it was working, and he was being lifted up. Not that he knew a specific room to look for. And neither did Lorna, for that matter. So he wasn’t really sure what her plan was. He just hoped it wouldn’t involve him turning into a little splat on the ground or the side of the building. 

He was slowly being brought around the sides of the building once he reached the top floor. The curtains weren’t drawn, because the occupant most likely assumed that no one would be able to peer in from thirty-five floors up. James felt a little guilty about spying like this, but it was for a good cause, and there really wasn’t any other way of figuring out when he was at the right room. If they were even at the right hotel at all, that was.

After passing by a few windows, moving at a very slow pace, James spotted a familiar jacket. Maybe that wasn’t really enough to go off of, since this Tony surely hadn’t been able to buy custom made designer clothing throughout his captivity, but the jacket that was draped over the arm of a large chair even had a tiny splotch of paint on the tip of one of the dangling sleeves. James remembered that Tony had always refused to throw the jacket away, even though it was useless for being in the lab or for being on company outings. The kids always made fun of him for the paint stain, but for whatever reason, he’d loved that stupid jacket. 

James hoped that Lorna would be able to understand when he tapped a few times against the metal around. It actually was a bit of a struggle to get his arms moving in the right direction because of the metal grip around them. He stayed floating in the air, but was no longer moving forward to the next window. Now he just had to figure out how to get in. Smashing it probably wouldn’t end well when it came to convincing Tony that he was a good guy, but obviously the windows would be locked from the inside. And there was probably some kind of security on them.

James really wished that Lorna had given him a few more minutes to actually think before tossing him into the deep end like this. He waited for a minute, and then saw Tony himself walk into the room, dressed in sweatpants and a wifebeater. He looked tired, with big bags under his eyes, but that was a normal sight after a few nights of binge work in the lab. And while the many scars decorating his arms weren’t quite the same, the fact that they were there was normal enough. 

Even though James had never actually seen Tony with the arc reactor, since it had been removed long before his birth, he’d seen pictures and heard stories about how it had gotten there and what it had meant to Tony. This Tony probably never got an arc reactor. In his research, James had never seen any mention of even the large one Howard had built. It seemed quite possible that the technology was just never created in this world. 

But James had to quickly shake himself out of his musings so that he could focus on what was actually going on at the moment. He tapped frantically at the window before realizing just a second later why that was such a stupid idea. Tony looked over at him with wide eyes, and then slowly walked over to the window to unlock it and slide it open. He peered around, most likely trying to figure out how James was suspended in place the way he was, and then took a few steps back.

Despite the lack of words exchanged, James decided that that was as good an invitation as any, and he awkwardly kicked his legs back and forth trying to get inside. He tapped on the metal around his chest again, and then suddenly he was pushed forward just a bit. Not enough to actually get in, though. Maybe he should have tried calling Lorna. 

Tony seemed to get frustrated by James’ very slow and awkward movements, and finally reached out to grab James by one of his arms and yank him inside before sliding the window shut again. Tony looked around the room for a moment, like he had to check whether they were alone or not, before settling his gaze on James. “So is there any particular reason Steve Rogers’ son would see fit to visit me in this supposedly unadvertised location?”

James held up a finger for Tony to wait a moment, and then started hitting against the metal harder. It took a few seconds, but then Lorna must have finally figured out what was going on, because the metal melted away from James entirely, and he dropped the few inches to the ground while the metal formed a large ball that sat unmoving on the floor. He took in a few large breaths because it felt good to breath unrestricted again, and then gave Tony an apologetic look. “I know this must be frightening to see me here, but I promise I’m not working for the Avengers, or anything like that. In fact, I was trying to help rescue you before, though you probably weren’t even aware that I tried. Look, I know this is going to sound absolutely insane, but I’m not actually from this world. It’s ten years in the future here, and also everyone is all wrong like they aren’t supposed to be, and-”

Tony’s eyes widened further. “James? Maybe you sound insane, but I absolutely believe you.”

Well that was a relief. James hadn’t really planned out how he could do much convincing. It was amazing enough that the Avengers had all believed him about being from elsewhere. “Alright, great. Not sure how I convinced you so quickly, but I’m glad for that. It should maybe make things a little easier to explain, though I’m not really sure-”

Tony shook his head insistently. “No, I mean I believe you because I’m in the same boat as you.”

Well that certainly stopped James short. It was the last thing he’d been expecting Tony to say, and he couldn’t help standing there with his mouth gaping open like a fool for a few seconds before he remembered that it would probably be a good idea to ask some questions about what was going on. “So are you from the same world as me? Where the Avengers are all heros, and your dad…” he trailed off meaningfully.

Tony nodded once. “Yes. I thought I must be the only one here. Still have no idea how I actually ended up here, but it’s nice to know that I’ve got company. I still remember the look on your parents’ faces when they first brought you back to the tower. They were so happy.”

James hesitated for a moment before continuing. He didn’t doubt that Tony was telling the truth, but if it was possible for there to be two versions of the world, then was there really anything stopping there from being even more than that? What if this Tony was from a third version where things were slightly different still? “Do you remember what happened with me last year that got me benched from the team?”

Tony furrowed his eyebrows. “Kind of hard to forget. Guess it never occured to Capsicle that having children born and raised in his world would sometimes lead to endings he wouldn’t prefer. I always disagreed with you being taken off the team. Or at least being taken off for so long. We’ve all got blood on our hands. I think Steve just didn’t want to accept that you got it on yours so young. Why are you asking? Oh, making sure I’m really your Tony Stark. Smart, very smart.” They both stared at each other for a few seconds before Tony walked over to one of the chairs to sink down into it. “So how long have you been here?”

James shrugged. “Not long. A couple of weeks, I think. I’ve been a bit too busy to keep steady track of the time.”

Tony reached up, probably to stroke his goatee the way he always did, only to lower his hand when he must have remembered that he was clean shaven here. “Honestly, I’ve woken up in captivity plenty of times before, so I was more annoyed than anything. It wasn’t until your mom showed up, and not to rescue me, that I realized how serious it was. Tried to plan an escape, but there were eyes everywhere, and I can’t help feeling so old and slow.” He reached up to tap against the center of his chest. “Thought I was losing my marbles when all the scars were just completely gone.” He leaned back, and then nodded to the chair across from his so that James would sit down as well. “I don’t remember working on any projects that could cause this kind of result, but I don’t really know how else to explain getting here. Doesn’t help that I’ve only had a day to get started on research of this world.”

James sighed. “Actually, the whole reason we’re here is really more my fault than anything else. Another James Rogers screw up. I was ranting like an idiot at Wanda, and then everything goes red and the next thing I know I’m waking up here. Where I’m roommates with Peter Parker.”

Tony snorted. “That’s proof enough that we’re in a different world. I can’t picture you and Peter ever getting along well enough to want to room together.”

“Apparently we’re like best friends,” James added with disgust evident in his voice. The sad part was that he had started getting along pretty well with Peter. But then the idiot had gone and tried to ruin Torunn and it wasn’t fair. But Peter wasn’t the biggest problem at the moment. “I have no idea why you were brought here too.”

Tony frowned. “I wasn’t in the same room as you, and as far as I can tell, no one else besides you and I were transferred here. So that is a very good question. Though I also can’t help but wonder why you showed up here to find me if you didn’t already know I was the Tony you know?”

Well this was the part that James hadn’t wanted to talk about with a Tony who was a complete stranger. He definitely didn’t want to talk about it with the Tony he knew and cared about, because he knew for a fact that this man was a hero, and was willing to make the sacrifice play when he had to. Then again, Tony Stark was a genius, so maybe he’d be able to come up with a solution that James hadn’t thought of. He cleared his throat, and slumped down in his seat. “About that…”


	20. Heroes

“So.”

If Torunn wasn’t so well-trained when it came to reflexes, she definitely would have flinched away from the sudden cold voice coming at her the moment she left her bedroom. 

She sighed when she saw who was waiting for her, even though she’d known as soon as she heard the voice. “Natalia. Good to see that you got back safely from your mission.”

The redhead frowned. “I was searching for my son. It seemed pointless to continue doing so when I heard that he was safe and sound here. And yet he is nowhere to be found in this tower. Tony told me to talk to you.”

Torunn mentally rolled her eyes at Tony for throwing her under the bus like that when Steve knew just as much about the situation as she did. But she was already awake, and she could understand Natalia’s concern, so she started towards the elevator to get to the communal kitchen, and Natalia followed right behind her with silent footsteps. 

Torunn stuck some bread into the toaster and set a plate down on the counter before turning to face Natalia. “I think he’s off sulking right now. But I know that he’ll be back, because he did promise that he would be. I don’t know if Tony told you anything else when you saw him, but the James that’s here isn’t really your son.” Natalia arched one eyebrow and crossed her arms over her chest, clearly impatient for Torunn to continue explaining things. “He’s from a different version of the world. We suspect that our James ended up there, while this James ended up here. He’s agreed to stick around so that we can try and figure out how to swap them back. Oh, and it also has something to do with Wanda Maximoff. So to make a long story short, you probably won’t find our James out there even if you keep searching, and the James that’s here is a total dick so try not to put too much stock into anything that he says.”

Natalia snorted. “Very well then. Tell me more about the James that isn’t our James.”

Torunn shrugged. “Honestly, I don’t really know that much about him. We haven’t talked much. All I know is that he’s in love with the Torunn from his world, and made me agree to be his girlfriend here. He works construction. He isn’t an Avenger. He’s friends with his world’s Peter. And I think that’s about the extent of my knowledge about him.” She paused for a moment before reaching out to rest a comforting hand on Natalia’s arm, deliberately telegraphing her movement so that the woman would be able to pull away if she wanted to.

Surprisingly, Natalia didn’t try to get away, even though normally she was the opposite of a tactile person, doing whatever she could to avoid physical contact with other people. Torunn didn’t know much about it, but she knew that all of the Avengers had more than their fair share of baggage and scars and trauma. 

The little moment between them was interrupted by the sound of someone clearing their throat, and both Torunn and Natalia whipped around to see who was standing in the doorway to the kitchen. It was James, with his hands tucked into his pockets and a sheepish expression on his face. “So it turns out that you can’t find any good hotels around here that’ll let you stay for free.”

“So where did you sleep?”

One corner of James’ mouth quirked up into a little smile. “I slept on one of those surprisingly comfy couches down in the main lobby of the building.” It was a smart move; the Avengers all used a private entrance for both their own ease, and to avoid causing any disruptions in Tony’s business at random times. No one would have thought to look in the lobby.

There was an almost proud look on Natalia’s face despite the fact that she wasn’t really this James’ mother. The look was gone as fast as it had gotten there, though, leaving Natalia’s usual look that was somehow both blank and suspicious at the same time. “So you’re some James that isn’t the right James, huh? That makes you a stranger. Usually there’s a more intense vetting process before someone would be allowed into the upper levels of the tower.”

James shrugged. “Well, I had Torunn vouching for me, so I guess that was good enough.” Then he looked directly at Torunn, making sure to meet her eyes. “You were right. I have been a coward. As soon as I’m back home, I’m going to do what I should have done years ago. And our little deal is over. I’ll stay so I can find a way home, but I’m not going to make you do anything you don’t want to do anymore. I want my own life back. It’s occurred to me that going through the rest of my teenage years and early twenties all over again would be some kind of hell that even I don’t deserve. And besides that, if I never go back, then I’ll never get an answer one way or another.”

Torunn’s bread finished toasting so she grabbed that, and then the three of them headed out to the living room to settle down. “So you wouldn’t happen to have done any spectacular enough soul searching last night to figure out how to get yourself home, would you?”

James snorted. “I realized I was wrong and I plan on fixing my mistake. What more could you possibly want from me?” 

Natalia gave James a hard look, as if he’d just confessed to never wanting her to get her son back, or something equally horrible. “Torunn said that Wanda Maximoff is involved in this?” When James just shrugged, Natalia stood up abruptly. “Let us go and see her, then.” 

They started to head out before James even had a chance to protest at all to the situation. Torunn ended up leading the way, since neither Natalia nor this James had been there before. When they got there, Natalia moved to the front of their little line to knock on the door. It swung open a moment later to reveal a grinning Pietro’s face. “Hey there. How’d you know where to find me on my day off?”

“We don’t have days off,” Natalia said pointedly. “We are always on duty. Haven’t you ever heard that crime never sleeps?” Pietro just shrugged and stepped aside, continuing to look rather cheerful. “We’re here to see your sister, anyways. Not you.”

The three of them shuffled into the apartment, and Pietro led them to the living room, where Wanda was in the middle of throwing little glowing red orbs at the TV, which seemed to change the channel. Whether that was easier or not than just using the remote was up for debate. She looked up slowly at the newcomers, and then rolled her eyes. “I had the feeling you would be back. Look, if I knew how to fix everything back to normal, do you not think I would have mentioned that sooner? I want to get the proper James back just as much as anyone else. He’s a friend, and it is sort of my fault that things got all messed up. But I swear I have no idea how to fix it. This is exactly why I never wanted to be an Avenger? I barely even understand anything about my own powers, and whatever I do, I end up risking messing up someone’s life.”

Natalia slowly stalked closer to the couch where Wanda was slouched over. “Perhaps you have not been able to think of an answer because you have not been given the proper motivation to do so.”

Wanda leapt to her feet at the same time that Pietro zipped forward to stand in between the two women. “Okay, that’s enough. Nat, there is not going to be any torture of any kind here. Wanda has plenty of motivation to find James. Like she just said, the two of them are friends. I may not understand anything about their friendship or how it works, but they get along and enjoy spending time together, so I don’t question it.” Then he glanced over his shoulder at his sister, while still keeping his body facing Natalia. “And Wanda, you need to relax. Of course Nat is worried. Her kid has been missing for far longer than anyone should have to suffer through a missing kid.”

James took a few steps back, and then casually leaned up against the wall as if it were an ordinary sight in front of him, even though he’d never even met Wanda back in his own world. Or maybe it was because he was used to a supervillain version of Natalia so this seemed normal. Because Torunn really couldn’t imagine how it would be possible to make this superhero Natalia any scarier than she already was. 

Natalia took a step back as well, and nodded her head once to show that she was calm. “I apologize. I suppose that I am just feeling rather on edge lately.”

Wanda shrugged, and then sank back down on the couch. “So, James who is not James, why don’t you tell me a bit about yourself? I don’t actually know how to reverse what was done, but it never hurts to be more informed. If I know enough about your world to picture it for myself then I might have a better idea of what I need to do in order to help.”

James took in a deep breath, and then slowly let it out before making his way over to the couch and gingerly sitting down next to Wanda. “Anything specific you want to know? It is an entire freakin’ world, afterall.”

Wanda furrowed her eyebrows. “That’s a good question. Alright, how about you tell me what the very first difference is that you noticed when you first got here?”

“Probably the fact that I’m practically prepubescent. Other than that, it would be that the vast majority of heroes in this world are villains in mine.”

Wanda nodded. “Alright. Have there been any noticeable physical differences? Like the landscape of the world itself?”

James shrugged. “I haven’t exactly gotten the chance to go sightseeing around here. Not that I’m a veteran traveler back home, either. There is one thing. This tower is called Stark Tower back home. Though I have never met the Stark in question, so I never really gave much thought about it.” 

Torunn moved to sit down in the chair near the couch, facing towards James and Wanda. “That’s so weird. You know, Tony is technically your dad in this world. Not biologically, but he’s your legal guardian.”

James frowned. “Why? Aren’t both parents still alive here?”

Natalia cleared her throat. “It was a misunderstanding. Everyone believed Steve and I were dead at the time.”

“We like to joke that Tony’s constantly trying to add to his collection of kids,” Torunn added. “He’s technically my dad too. And even though he never legally adopted Peter, it’s obvious that he sees Peter like a son. Oh, and there’s also Harley and Gwen, and all the other young Avengers.. He never wanted kids, and then ended up with a whole handful of them.”

James smiled. “Sounds sweet. At least that will make it easier on your James. I’ll have to go all the way to Thor to ask for dating permission. Your James can just ask Stark. Though legally speaking, I’m not really sure how that would all work.”

Torunn was glad that she had good enough control of herself to be able to prevent a giant blush from showing through. “Not that I would have any interest in him anyways, but what century do you think we’re living in? I’m more than capable of choosing dates on my own, without parental permission.”

James shrugged. “I didn’t mean it as a sexist thing. I just meant it more of a ‘Thor is a freaking scary bastard who would torture me and kill me if I tried to make a move’ type of thing. Which really isn’t fair, considering the lack of contact he actually has with his daughter, but it’s better to be safe than sorry.” He cleared his throat then looked back at Wanda. “So what’s your next question?”

Natalia seemed to be listening to the conversation just as intently as the rest of them. It made sense that she’d be curious, not only because it’s the place where her son was most likely residing at the moment, but also just because it was so strange to know that other worlds existed. Nearly identical except for a few details. And from what James talked about when it came to his limited knowledge of American and world history, it seemed as though most of it matched up to everything that was history in this world as well. 

It was certainly a bizarre situation, but Torunn was determined to somehow help get everything switched back around to the way that it was supposed to be. Though as she thought of everything James had said about his feelings for her, and the look on Steve’s face at the news that his best friend was still out there, and the way Torunn had decided it was time to forgive her James and move on, she couldn’t help feeling as though some things had already been irreparably changed.


	21. Chapter 21

Tony was silent for a long minute after James finished his explanation of pretty much everything that had happened, and why he was there in the hotel room. It was an understandable enough reaction. James would have also understood it if Tony just started shouting out loud or kicked him right out of the room. Though he knew that that would never happen. One thing Tony had always done that stood apart from any of the other older Avengers was that he never yelled at any of the kids. Ever. No matter what they might have done to deserve getting yelled at. 

Finally, Tony turned back to James. “To be honest, this isn’t what I wanted to hear. I get the opportunity to wake up in and explore a whole new world, only to find out that this whole place is very messed up. And then- you tell me that it comes down to me or the world? I guess this is the only time I can ever say that my life is so important. But not worth billions of other lives.” His shoulders slumped down, and he got to his feet, clearly unable to sit still any longer. “Since I first became Iron Man, I figured I wasn’t going to live to be very old. Of course I started the gig already being old; I just thought I’d never get that much older. But then I did, and I lived to see the new generation, and-” he sighed, and his shoulders slumped down. “I guess I’d started to let myself actually believe that maybe I’d get my happy ending for once. It was foolish of me to think that way.” 

James frowned, and wanted to reach out to offer some kind of comfort, but he knew that while Tony was a very tactile man, it always had to be on his own terms, and James didn’t want to make things worse. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have come here. I’ll just go-”

Tony shook his head. “It’s not your fault, kid. This is just karma or something. Funny, I never really believed in the concept of karma until all my baggage actually came back to bite me in the ass. This won’t be the first time I’ve taken one for the team. I just wish that it didn’t have to be so far from home, you know?”

And James did know exactly what Tony meant. It didn’t matter how physically close they were to the tower, it wasn’t their tower. It wasn’t their home. And yes, just the idea of dying so far away from home was terrifying. But Tony wouldn’t even necessarily die, he’d just be handed over to the Avengers, who would do god knows what to them. And even if James figured out how to get him and Tony back home to their own world, it would still leave a Tony locked up. There just didn’t seem to be any way to win here, and James hated that. He’d been raised by a father who was always so full of optimism and hope that it seemed particularly depressing to not be able to figure out a better solution. 

“Maybe…” James trailed off, not wanting to say anything that would sound stupid to a genius like Tony Stark. But Tony just looked at him with one eyebrow raised, waiting to hear whatever idea he might have come up with. “Maybe this world isn’t even real?” he offered hesitantly. “If it’s not then we don’t really have any obligation to help, right?”

Tony tilted his head. “And what exactly would you say classifies something as being real? What would make you or I any more real than any of the people from this world? And even if they were just somehow made up, how can you be the one to decide that their pain is made up too? Would you have really gotten so upset about Torunn’s decision if you didn’t think she was real?”

James sighed. “I know, I know. I guess I just wish that there could be some kind of magical solution to get us out of this without anyone getting hurt.”

Tony grinned, and even though it was only a shadow of his usual smiles, it was still a comfort to see. “Come on, James, you know me. Why look for a magical solution when there’s got to be a scientific one around here somewhere?” Then he walked over to the window James had entered through, and peered out, though of course he wouldn’t be able to see the ground from here. “Do you think we should invite your friend up? I’ll admit, I’m curious to learn more about this mysterious third Maximoff sibling that nobody knew about in our world.”

“I’m not actually sure if her last name is Maximoff, but yeah, if you could let security know to let her up, it might make this conversation easier. Means I wouldn’t have to remember everything to report back to her after this. If anyone’s going to be able to figure out a way out of this for us, I’m sure that it would be her. Well, her and you, but I did technically see her first, and her sister is the one who got us here in the first place.”

Tony reached over to ruffle James’ hair before going to find a phone. James grabbed a pen off of a small table, then knelt down in front of the ball of metal that had been used to carry him up in the first place. He twisted up the clippy part of the expensive looking pen, and then used it to begin scratching at the metal. It wasn’t very useful, and he wasn’t even sure if Lorna would be able to tell what it said just by feeling for it, but it was worth a try. Better than shouting out the window for her, anyways. He wondered if maybe just dropping the hunk of metal out the window would be more effective, but that ran the risk of accidentally hitting some random person, or causing Lorna to think that they were under attack. Either way, it wouldn’t end well as far as James could see. 

Tony walked back over to him a couple of minutes later. “I’m going to send one of my guys out to fetch Lorna. Anything that stands out about her so they know who to look for?”

“Well, I mean, aside from the bright green hair, she’s a perfectly average looking woman.”

Tony snorted. “Got it.” He went back over to the phone quickly before returning to James again. “She should be up here soon. Hopefully she doesn’t have trust issues bad enough to keep her from understanding my invitation.”

James shrugged. “No idea.” He thought of their first meeting, when she’d already known who he was, but had refused to let Bucky enter the apartment with her. He wasn’t sure that that qualified as ‘trust issues’ though, considering the fact that her sister had told her about James’ impending arrival, and her wanting to keep her sister’s identity and location absolutely secret. “Guess we’ll find out. We didn’t exactly come here with a plan in mind, to be honest.”

“It shows,” Tony told him with an amused glint in his eyes. “Regardless, it is good to see you again, James. I’m not sure if you’re the person I would choose if I knew I could only have one from our world, but you’re better than nothing.”

James narrowed his eyes. “Gee, thanks. Some dad you are.”

A look of confusion seemed to flash by on Tony’s features so quickly that James wasn’t even sure if he’d seen it or not. “Right. Well, you know me. Wouldn’t want to butt in Captain America’s territory if I can help it.”

“Yeah, obviously.” As Tony turned to head towards the little kitchen area, James couldn’t help looking the man over with scrutinizing eyes. Maybe it was just a byproduct of being trapped in this backwards world, but he was starting to think that he was the one getting trust issues. 

Of course Steve was James’ father. He always has been, and he always would be. But all of the Avengers from James’ world liked to joke about the fact that according to the law, Tony was technically his legal guardian because of some incident or another that had happened ages ago. 

Everyone in this world besides Torunn had flipped their platforms compared to their counterparts in James’ world. Even if Tony had managed to not flip either, it still didn’t explain why Tony of all people would be transported to this world with James. He could feel his heart start to beat slightly faster in his chest as he considered all of the possibilities. 

He’d just spilled everything to Tony with only a minimal amount of proof that this even was his Tony. Tony knew that James had killed, but James had confessed that to Peter, who had been the one to arrange for Tony’s release. And everything else that Tony had mentioned about being in the wrong world could easily be attributed to what James had told the Natalia of this world when he’d first been brought to see her. And he’d seemed confused by James’ reference to his legal guardianship of him. 

Sure, the man looked tired and pale, but that was a normal look on Tony Stark. And there weren’t any other signs of torture or serious injury to him. And despite the fact that the Avengers didn’t want people to ask too many questions about Tony, they had let his tower keep the Stark name. 

James glanced down at his watch. “Oh, shoot. We spent so much time trying to figure out a way to get up here that I completely lost track of time. I need to get back to the apartment to see Rin.”

“I’m sure your girlfriend will understand if you need to take a rain check,” Tony said dismissively.

James tensed up, and Tony seemed to immediately notice. He was still a genius, afterall. “I never mentioned having a girlfriend in this world. How could you have possibly known that?”

They both stared at each other for several long seconds before Tony sighed, and sank back down onto the couch. “I suppose that there’s no point in treating you like a moron. You got me, I’m not really from your world.”

For some reason, James had expected a long game of denile and vague questions that hinted at what each of them knew. But he was glad that Tony had just confessed so easily, because James had never been good at understanding all those word games that Tony had mastered over the years. “So why even pretend?”

“To build trust, mostly. To be perfectly honest, I was expecting you to show up eventually. Parker told me that you probably would. He thought it would be easiest to figure out your motivations if I could just get you to tell me directly. And he was right, of course. You did just tell me pretty much everything. Not that any of it is particularly new information.”

James furrowed his eyebrows. “But I don’t understand. Why would you want to help the Avengers at all? After everything they’ve done to you?”

Tony shrugged. “Kid, what exactly is it that you think they’ve done? It’s been so long since I’ve been seen in the public eye that I can go out and about whenever I want with minimal disguise and not have to worry about being recognized. I live in what’s practically a palace. I don’t have to deal with all the problems of running a business. I get to spend as much time as I want working on my projects, and the only condition is that I sell my weapons only to the Avengers. I’ve been living it up, quite satisfied with my life. But the Avengers all decided together that turning Torunn Thorsdottir was worth ‘setting me free’. The terms of our deal hasn’t changed. As far as anyone knows, I just don’t make weapons at all anymore.”

James didn’t feel afraid of Tony. If it did come down to a physical fight between them, he knew that he had the advantage. But he couldn’t deny the heaviness in his heart. The disappointment. “I guess I was pretty stupid to believe that I’d actually found another person who would be on my side.”

Tony shrugged again. “I wouldn’t call that stupid. A little naive, maybe, but sweet.”

“I just thought that maybe you were a constant. That you were such a good person that you wouldn’t be changed just because everyone else in the world was.”

That brought a small frown to Tony’s face. “I’d be the last person to call myself a good person for sure. When I was younger, I was naive like you, thought that I could actually make the world a better place. I was wrong, though. And it turns out that I’ve been much happier with my current circumstances than I ever was before the Avengers took me in.”

James crossed his arms over his chest. “So why not just publically join the Avengers? If you’re going to be one of the bad guys, then at least own up to the fact that that’s what you are.”

He doubted that anything he said would actually get through to Tony. Mostly he was just talking because he needed to get his frustration out somehow. “I’m not a good person,” Tony repeated. “But I’d like to think that I’m not completely evil, either. A lot of good people work for Stark Industries. Innocent people. The company’s reputation dropped when their top engineer dropped off the map, but imagine how much worse it would have been if the company’s owner had become a known villain. SI wouldn’t have survived the blow, and all of those employees would have been out of jobs, and all of the amazing things SI has invented for the betterment of human life would have never been made.”

“So you’re not a bad guy or a good guy, huh? I guess in some ways that does make you similar to my Tony. He was pretty bad for a lot of his life, but then he turned himself around and became one of the most caring, selfless, kind people I know. In your case, you didn’t separate yourself into two parts of your life, you just swirled all of your good and bad together and hoped to come out on top.”

There was a knock at the door, and Tony called out that it was open. Personally, James thought that that seemed like a bad idea in terms of security. On the other hand, if the Avengers were in on Tony’s release, then they had no reason to actually go after him. 

The door swung open, and Lorna walked inside. Her eyes flicked around the room quickly until they landed on James, and then she took a few steps closer to them. “So have you already explained everything?” There didn’t seem to be any point in mentioning that Tony had almost tricked him into believing that he was a different Tony. So he just nodded instead. It wasn’t a lie because he had already explained everything, even if it had been under false pretenses. 

Lorna looked at Tony, one eyebrow arched. “So what do you want to do, Mr. Stark? It’s your life.”

He chuckled. “May as well head back. I’m sure that the Avengers would have no problem arranging to pick me up in a public and violent way.”

Lorna eyed him warily. “Are you sure? I highly doubt that they’ll let you go again once you’re back in their clutches.”

Tony shrugged. “If the whole world gets destroyed then I’d be dead anyways. It would seem that Torunn is more important to the world at this time than I am. Don’t worry, I’m not bitter about it. I know exactly where my strengths and weaknesses lie, and I’m not going to be jealous of that girl. Why don’t you two just head on your way now. I’ll get in touch with the Avengers. And I’m sure that Torunn’s transgressions can be written off as mind control, or something of the sort, as long as she’s back to being a hero quickly enough.”

Lorna was giving Tony a searching look, though James wasn’t sure what he was looking for. “Before we go, you wouldn’t happen to have any pointers about how to save the world, would you? From what I could tell, you’re supposed to be some kind of a smart guy.”

Tony shook his head. “Sorry, but I’ve got nothing. If I think of something, I’ll be sure to pass it on via the Avengers. Good luck, though. Believe me, I don’t want the world to end anymore than anyone else does.”

“Take care of yourself,” James said seriously. “Even if you’re not my Tony, you’re still a Tony. And you do matter to the world, no matter what you might think.” Then he nodded for Lorna to follow him out of the room. She only paused to lift her metal ball and melt it into loops around her limbs before following James out the door. There was a lot to think about, but overall, James just couldn’t help feeling like a failure. It had been his bright idea to go and rescue Tony without even knowing if the man really needed rescuing, and Torunn was the one who’d had her reputation tarnished because of it. And now Tony was going back and Torunn was coming back, and everything that had just happened had been so stupidly pointless. No wonder Torunn had never had any interest in being with him. All James was capable of doing was constantly screwing up.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The One In Which the Author Has A Close Call And Almost Accidentally Creates A Giant Gaping Plot Hole (tm)


	22. Chapter 22

James took several deep breaths, feeling like he was going to vibrate right out of his own skin as he waited for Torunn to knock on the apartment door. Peter had already sworn that she was coming, but it was also a little difficult to trust Peter at the moment, all things considered. It was crazy to think that he and this Peter were actually supposed to be friends. All James could think about was the fact that he pretty much hated Peter back in his own world, and found no reason for things to be any different in this one.

Finally, before James could get too lost in his own thoughts, there was a polite knock at the door, and James darted forward to answer before Torunn could change her mind and flee. He looked at her carefully, trying to see if there were any visible injuries. Of course, considering the fact that she was Asgardian and living on Earth it was highly unlikely that there would be any physical hurts, but he still felt the need to look. 

Torunn arched one eyebrow, looking vaguely amused. “So are you going to let me in or not?”

“Right, right, sorry.” James stepped aside so that Torunn could walk into the apartment, and he couldn’t help staring at her as she shrugged off her coat and hung it by the front door. They both walked over to the couch to sit down, though they left the cushion between them empty, so that they could both prove that they were capable of giving space to the other. “So how are you? Are you okay?” This time he was asking about any injuries that might go beyond the physical ones.

Torunn shrugged. “I’m fine, really. Pissed off more than anything. I can’t believe I was stupid enough to nearly give up everything I care about to save someone who was already exactly where they wanted to be.”

James furrowed his eyebrows. “Peter told you?”

She nodded. “Yeah. I think he felt bad about having that kind of deception against me in the first place. And he should! That jerk knew that I would agree to just about anything to protect an innocent person. It’s what I’m supposed to do as a hero. Some hero I am, though,” she snorted, and looked down at her lap. “I can’t believe I let myself get tricked like that.”

James bit his lip. As angry as he was about what had happened, and as much as he hated Peter for it, he also knew that it wouldn’t be fair or honest to let all of the blame lie there. “I’m sorry, Torunn. I’m so, so sorry. I was so sure that I knew how things worked around here that I put you in a situation where you had to-”

Torunn reached out to gently take one of James’ hand, and she gave a light squeeze. “I don’t blame you. You had no reason to believe that this world’s Tony Stark was anything other than what he’s been advertised as. And thanks to that performance the Avengers put on to get him back, there’s never going to be doubt in anyone’s mind about his innocence.” She sighed, and stood up, looking just as restless as James felt. “We need to figure out how to get you back to your own world as soon as possible, James.”

He nodded in agreement. “I know that. Pretty sure it’s what I’ve been trying to do since I first woke up here. But why are you suddenly all for it?”

Torunn went to the kitchen to grab a glass of water, and spoke over her shoulder at James. “Because this world is too rough for you. It’s just not the one you were raised in, so I don’t think you can survive here for very long. It’s a lot tougher than anything you’re used to, and I don’t want to see you get hurt.”

“Believe me, I want to get back to my own world. I may be the disappointment of the family there, but at least I have a family that I feel like I can actually care about. But I’ve been told by a pretty reliable source that I need to be able to contact the Wanda of my world, without dragging her into this one. Which sounds basically impossible to me.”

Torunn shrugged. “I wouldn’t give up so quickly if I were you. There’s always an answer, even if you have to dig a little to find it. Is it possible for our Wanda to contact yours? Or maybe-” she cut herself off as a thoughtful look crossed her face. “So now that we’ve confirmed that you really are the only constant between worlds, since Stark is very corrupt, and I let myself be villainized so easily, maybe this all has something to do with you. Of course we don’t know anything for sure, but if you’re here, then why shouldn’t we believe that my James is over there? And if there’s two mixed up people in each other’s worlds, then maybe that’s the connection that we need.”

James stared at Torunn with uncertainty. “No offense, but that sounds pretty crazy. I don’t have any power or ability that would let me communicate with someone in another world. And if I was going to have some kind of direct line to the other James, then why wouldn’t I have been able to talk with him from the very beginning?”

Torunn shrugged, but she didn’t look quite ready to give up on her idea yet. That was one of the things James loved about her, though. Her stubbornness and unwillingness to give up when it came to figuring out how to help people. That’s also the same trait that had always made it so difficult to find time alone with his Torunn, but he wouldn’t want to change her. Not really. When he’d been stupid enough to vent to Wanda, he hadn’t actually wanted to see all of this happen the way that it had. 

“Well there’s always got to be something. If there’s one person powerful enough to create a world swap or body swap or whatever this situation, then why shouldn’t there be others who are capable of doing the same thing? Even if it’s your Wanda that has to be spoken with to actually be of any help, there’s no reason to believe that there aren’t other people out there who could help us talk to her. Your dad was practically religious in how he kept up with that list of superpowered people. Maybe we can find something on there.”

James hadn’t considered even checking that list before, and it made him feel like a bit of a moron that he hadn’t. “Maybe. But how would we even access it? The Avengers all hate you, and I highly doubt that they’re big fans of mine, considering how I nominated you to lead Earth’s defenses. Besides, you probably have a lot you need to be doing to restore your reputation, and you can’t get that done if you’re stuck here trying to help me figure out my own problems. The issue that would affect billions of people should definitely be the priority one to focus on.”

Torunn frowned. “Have you ever wondered if maybe all of our issues are connected?” At James’ confused face, she had to elaborate. “You showed up here, and soon afterwards we found out that someone was coming with the intention of destroying the world. We never would have figured out the truth about Tony Stark if you hadn’t come here. And because you nominated me to lead everyone, we just might have a chance at uniting the villains and the heroes of this world.”

James scoffed. “I definitely have trouble believing that I could ever be important enough to the universe that my presence would cause so much of a fuss.”

Torunn shook her head, looking a bit frustrated. “I’m not trying to say that you’re the cause of all those things happening. Just that there’s got to be some kind of connection. There’s got to be some kind of reason that you’re here. Even if you were just sent here for the sole reason that it isn’t the world you know, then why would you be sent to this world specifically? Maybe there’s a million other variations of the universe out there that could be a lot more useful for- for something.” She sighed, and chugged down a second glass of water before returning to the couch, though she remained standing up. “There has to be a reason for all of this to happen to us. To you.”

James tilted his head to the side, feeling curious all of a sudden. “Do you believe in fate? That everything happens for a reason?”

“I guess I do. I never really sat down to think about it very much, but it makes about as much sense to me as anything else. I was never a very religious person. I don’t know if that’s the same in both worlds. I know my parents believe in the Norns and in magic, and your father always believed in the Christian god, and other than that, the Avengers have never really had any outwardly stated beliefs. Which makes sense, I suppose. Why would they want to believe in something that would damn them to one kind of hell or another? But it’s always just kind of made sense to me to think that everything's meant to happen, and that it’s all connected. Why? What does your Torunn believe in?”

That was a question that James had to actually stop and think about. It’s not like he and Torunn were very close- no matter how much he wished that that could be the case- and their conversations very rarely touched on any kind of religious beliefs. Those were probably too heavy of a topic for people who seemed to barely know each other. He let out a soft chuckle as he remembered a conversation he’d once overheard between Torunn and Tony. “She doesn’t believe in the Norse gods.” Before Torunn could ask what that was even supposed to mean, he explained. “Of course she knows it as a fact that Yggdrasil and the nine exist, but she doesn’t believe that Aesir are gods. Just thinks they’re another sort of person. And Tony was glad to hear her admit that, because Thor and Loki would always insist that they were gods and we were all just mortals.” He stopped suddenly and gasped. 

Torunn leaned over so that she could look at him more closely. “What? What did you remember?”

“We need someone who can get us into contact with my world’s Wanda, right? Well who would be better for the job than a god with reality bending magic?”

Torunn stood back up straight. “What?”

James nodded quickly. “Yes, Loki!” He jumped up, unable to contain his excitement at the revelation he’d just had. “I know everyone has swapped around, but even though he was never malicious in my world, he was also never a hero, which means he isn’t going to just be a straight up villain in this world, right? And he’s your uncle, so you should be able to call him! I can’t believe that I didn’t think of him sooner! Surely the guy who hops from planet to planet in the blink of an eye should be capable of going from one planet to a slightly different version of it, right?”

Torunn gave James a long look, and it was enough to make some of his excitement die down. “My uncle? What the hell are you talking about? I have no blood relatives besides my parents and my grandparents on Thor’s side.”

James frowned. “What? But that would be the biggest change yet between our worlds, and that shouldn’t be…” he trailed off, realizing that it was fruitless to point out what should or should not be possible, considering that he was currently in a situation that he never would have considered to be possible before he’d actually gotten here. “In my world, Loki is Thor’s adopted brother, taken by Odin to be a political token to use for bartering with the Jotuns.”

Torunn shook her head. “I’ve never heard of any Loki, and I definitely don’t have an adoptive uncle.”

“Well. Maybe you aren’t relatives, but surely he must still at least exist in this world, right? Maybe he was just raised by his birth parents. Which might mean he’s not bitter towards Thor and Asgard, which could make him more amenable to helping us. The only problem would be actually contacting him. Do you have any way of getting to Jötunheimr?”

Torunn snorted. “As if. Aesir and Jotnar despise each other. And even if they didn’t, it wouldn’t matter because my father abandoned me on Midgard, remember? I have no connections or involvement to anywhere besides this planet, and even here I have very little I can rely on.”

But James wasn’t willing to give up on this idea. He knew that Loki was powerful, and should be capable of helping them out here. “Well, before I can figure out how to get in touch with him, I need to figure out who he is. I know you’re stuck here, but do you at least know the basics about the nine? Like who Laufey's son is?”

Torunn’s eyes widened, and she didn’t look very pleased at all. “You’re joking, right? This ‘Loki’ that you want to ask for help from is Laufeyson? Lolví Laufeyson is practically the sole reason that Asgard and Jötunheimr hate each other. Many years ago, before I was born, Laufeyson found a weakness in Asgard’s defenses, and led an invasion against the Aesir. Laufey was killed in the invasion, and that’s when Lolví took over as leader of his tribe. Many believe he arranged for his own father to be killed solely to become ruler. Most of the blood spilled during the invasion can be directly attributed to him. He is a very dangerous being, and there is no way that he would ever agree to help you. I’m sorry to let you down, but that’s the truth.”

Everything would be so much easier if James could actually figure out how the whole switching of sides thing actually worked. Because he would consider Loki morally gray at most, but leaning more towards heroic. Despite the pranks he played far too often, he was generally willing to head out and help the Avengers fight off villains. But he’d always made it clear that his allegiance was not to them. Though he never answered when they asked who he was loyal to. 

So many people from James’ world saw Loki as a monster because of his past and because of his birth parents. So maybe there was a similar situation going on here? Maybe everyone believed that he was a bloodthirsty villain, but there was actually more to the story than that. Even though this could just end up being a complete dead end, James suddenly found himself determined to figure it out one way or another. 

“Would it be possible for you to summon your father here?”

Torunn rolled her eyes at James’ insistence. “He never showed up even when I was in grave danger, or at my lowest emotional points. Why would it be any different now?” A strange look crossed over her that seemed almost like hope. “Is Thor any different in your world?”

It didn’t take much thought for James to know the answer to that. For a moment he considered lying, but then figured that that would probably only end up making things worse. “Unfortunately not. He visits maybe once a year, and sends gifts on holidays and special occasions, but if it weren’t for photographs, I’d have no idea what he looks like. It’s just because he’s so busy ruling Asgard that he doesn’t-”

Torunn cut him off. “Don’t bother trying to make excuses for him.” She sounded more resigned than anything, like she couldn’t possibly have expected any other kind of answer. “Odin raised his son while he was Allfather. There’s no reason Thor could not do the same, other than the simple truth of that he did not want to. He sent me here to be rid of me. And that’s fine; I understand it. Just means that he isn’t going to be popping by anytime soon to help us out with anything, even if it did come down to the entire fate of the world. He’s never held any particular love for Midgard anyways.”

“Strange, since his wife is Midgardian.”

Torunn stopped to stare at James with wide eyes. “Really? Who? Is my mother Midgardian in your world?”

James shook his head. “No, your mom is still Sif, but Thor ended up falling in love with a woman named Jane, and eventually gave her one of Idun’s apples so that they could get married and live happily ever after in Asgard while Sif remained one of his top warriors. Did he marry Sif in this world?”

Torunn nodded. “Yes. He bore a child with her, so he had to marry her. I think that that’s part of why he dislikes me so much. My existence tied him down to a woman he didn’t really want. But none of this is important to saving the world, so let’s focus more on that, shall we?”

James nodded. “Sure, sure.” But he couldn’t chase away the idea that Loki might just be the answer that they needed.


	23. Chapter 23

James wasn’t entirely sure that this was going to work, if he was being honest with himself. In fact, he was pretty sure that this was going to end very badly and cause all kinds of damage and destruction and drama. But he still had to at least try, right? He needed to know that he’d exhausted all possibilities before he ever gave up on the idea of being able to get back home. 

He looked up at the sky, and raised both of his hands out. “Lolví Laufeyson, I call to you now! I pray for your help and guidance in the trials of my life! I need a man of great power on my side, and I am in great need of your aid! I know that I could never provide you with any compensation that would be valuable enough to earn your time, but I beg for some all the same! Please-” James was cut off mid sentence by a blue hand wrapped around his throat, squeezing tightly enough that he could barely breathe. If he was just a normal human then he probably wouldn’t be able to breathe at this point. 

And then just as suddenly he was dropped to the ground, and found himself staring up at a larger, bluer looking version of the Loki that he knew. Even though Torunn had warned him that this Lolví was dangerous, James couldn’t help feeling a bit relieved to see a (mostly) familiar face. Thor may have never been around, but Loki had always been a pretty consistent figure in his life. And after everything that had happened last year, Loki had been one of the few Avengers to not look at him any differently. He’d simply sat down with James at one point, told him that they all had blood on their hands, and then stayed with him in silence for hours after until James had finally broken down and let loose everything that had been on his mind. 

Though this Lolví didn’t look nearly as friendly as James’ Loki. There was none of that usual mischievous smirk or cheery demeanor that came from knowing he was quite often the most powerful person in the room. Lolví had cold, red eyes, and an entirely unamused look on his face. “Who are you to presume that a mere mortal should ever dare to summon me?”

James stayed on the ground, wanting to remain unthreatening. “My name is James Rogers, and I need your help because this isn’t my world. If there’s anyone out there strong enough to help me get back home then it would be you. I just need to get into contact with a woman from my real world, a witch who accidentally sent me here in the first place. She is the only one who can bring me home, but I have no way to talk to her. Please, please help me.”

Lolví arched one eyebrow, and for a moment, he did resemble Loki more strongly. “Flattery is pathetic when used only to gain means to an end.” Then he shrugged. “But I suppose you have piqued my curiosity. Speak quickly before I grow bored of you. Why should I care whether you return home? If I grow bored I may be inclined to smash you to pieces.”

James gulped. “You’ve always been a seeker of knowledge, right? If you can communicate with people from other worlds, then you would be opening up all kinds of possibilities for what you could learn or where you could go. You would far outpace anyone else in this world. Or maybe you could even talk with the version of yourself that’s from my world, and you could exchange all kinds of information. There’s so much out there to learn, and you’d be doing yourself a big disservice to not even try to-”

Lolví raised one hand abruptly, and James quickly cut himself off. He really hoped that Lolví would actually listen to him and want to help him, even if it wasn’t for James’ sake that he did so. “You speak as if you know me, mortal. Tell me of my counterpart.”

That was at least something James could do easily enough. “His name is Loki. Sometimes Laufeyson, sometimes Liesmith, and originally Odinson.” Lolví’s eyes widened, but he didn’t interrupt, just waited for James to continue. “He was taken as an infant by Odin to be raised as one of his sons. He had his true heritage hidden from even himself, and was spelled to appear as an Aesir. He is an expert mage, despite magic being considered a woman’s work, and very intelligent. He loves to play pranks on people, though these days he rarely causes any actual harm to anybody. He-”

“Enough,” Lolví drawled out slowly. “These all sound as though they are things that could be read straight out of a book, if your world records the tales of the Nine as myths the way this one does. Tell me something that actually matters.”

James hesitated for a moment. He and Loki weren’t super close, but they had felt a connection between them, and the things Loki had shared in privacy over the years seemed too important to be sharing with other people. But if that’s what it would take to get back home, then James would do it anyways, because he needed to get home. He hoped that Loki would be able to understand. James cleared his throat once before continuing, speaking more slowly as he carefully thought out each word before saying it. “Loki loves his brother Thor, no matter how often he claims the opposite. They were raised as brothers, and Thor never gave up on him, no matter how bad he acted or what he did to hurt others. It also made Loki always push harder, waiting to find the limit before he would push even Thor away entirely. He also dotes on his niece, Torunn. She’s the daughter of Thor, but was abandoned on Midgard to be raised by others, just like the Torunn of this world was. Because he was not raised by his birth parents either, he felt some connection to her. He felt as though they were both outcasts of Asgard that no one else wanted, and he wanted to be there for her to prove otherwise. He is also plagued by nightmares of his past. Things he was forced to do after facing torture and pain beyond imagination. Some nights he still wakes up screaming, and if anyone tries to go to him they will be flung away by magic without him even meaning to do that.”

Both men stared at each other in silence for a long moment, and then Lolví finally spoke. “So then I suppose there is no fairytale ending for this ‘Loki’ of yours.” It wasn’t even a question, merely stated as a fact.

James shrugged. “He probably doesn’t have the kind of life he would have envisioned as a child, but I don’t think it was a bad ending, necessarily. Not that his life is anywhere close to over, of course. I mean yeah, he went through some pretty awful stuff, but I don’t think he dislikes his life. And he’s gotten a lot of good things out of life.”

It was difficult to tell from Lolví’s face whether he was actually considering helping James or not. He wasn’t trying to get his hopes up too high, but James really needed a win right now, and getting help contacting his Wanda would be a wildly large step in the right direction. He needed this. And he also didn’t want Lolví to kill him for wasting his time, of course. 

Several very long seconds passed before James decided that he needed to talk some more. It might come across as annoying, but he was starting to think that his current argument hadn’t been enough. He would have thought nothing would stop Loki in his quest for new knowledge, but then again, this wasn’t Loki. Not really, anyways. “In my world, everyone went a really long time where they just called Loki a villain because of the things that happened in his past. Even now, after he’s done so much good for all of us, he still gets looked down on by the people around him. I was warned not to call you here because I was told that you are some kind of vicious monster. But I have to know if you’re more similar to my world’s Loki than I could have expected. If maybe everyone calls you the villain when you aren’t.”

Lolví sneered at James as if he’d just heard something extremely stupid. “You must be exceedingly idiotic to have the audacity to suggest that I am not every bit as fearsome as all the tales make me out to be. That I do not have every bit of valor and strength and-”

“That’s not what I was trying to say!” James was quick to interject. “I have no doubt that you are a very mighty and strong warrior! I’m just saying that maybe you’ve gotten a bad reputation through no fault of your own, and that maybe, to protect yourself from further harm, you fell into a bit of a pitfall of constantly fighting everyone to prove that what they were saying about you is the truth. It’s a defensive tactic. If they’re not going to see any good in you, then just force them to only see the bad. Be exactly who they’re expecting you to be, and then it won’t hurt when they call you a bad guy.”

James held his breath, not sure how Lolví would take that. But he felt like it was something that needed to be said. His Loki had never explicitly told him any of that, but it was all stuff that James had been able to put together on his own over the years between what little Loki did say, and what he overheard some of the older Avengers talk about sometimes.

Then Lolví let out a bit of a barking laugh. “You talk as if you are some great expert on the matters of my life, though I find it difficult to believe that that is the truth. I would normally smash down any who would be so presumptuous, especially a mortal. But I will admit that your story is amusing enough. And what is it you would have me do, exactly, to make contact with this other world of yours?”

James blinked a couple of times. “Um, I’m not really sure. I don’t know anything about magic. I was hoping you might have some ideas? I mean, you’re always going from one planet to another without any trouble, so it shouldn’t be that much harder to go to a different version of the same planet, right?”

Lolví laughed louder than before. “And once again, a mortal has proven to me that they are an entirely useless species. Amusing, though. Very well, I shall attempt to assist you in this matter of yours. I shall return when I have found a means to accomplish what you wish for.” And then he was gone before James could even say that he was thankful for what Lolví had just agreed to do.

James stared up at the sky, feeling slightly dazed, but then he left and headed back to the apartment. He was glad to see that Peter wasn’t home. He wasn’t sure whether he’d be able to explain or not that he had decided to summon a Jotnar to help him hop words, or at the very least, get in touch with Wanda, who would hopefully be able to get him back home.

He stopped for a moment to consider calling Torunn, but considering how adamant she had been about calling Lolví being a very bad idea, he didn’t want her to lecture him or get worried about him. He’d wait until he had something more substantial to go off of before he started telling people about his plan. But at least he did have a plan for now, sort of. Maybe Lolví would just screw him over and make him totally regret ever asking for anything in the first place, but James hoped that that wouldn’t be the case. He already knew that he couldn’t judge the people here by who they were in his world, and yet he couldn’t help hoping that there was yet another person who had remained the same within the very core of themselves.


	24. Heroes

Torunn wasn’t the best when it came to spying and subtlety, and it was always especially difficult to try and spy on someone like Natalia. But she wasn’t exactly trying to remain low-key as she stood in the kitchen trading whispered shouts with Steve. “-your son is still missing!”

“I know, and of course I’m worried sick about him, but if there’s a chance to find Bucky-”

“You’re really just going to go off on some suicidal mission on the word of a kid who was raised by supervillains? Just because Torunn says he’s alright doesn’t mean he wouldn’t try to-”

“I don’t think he’s trying to do anything! I deserve the chance to make my own decisions, and it should be my choice to take this chance to find my best friend! I wouldn’t even be here today if it weren’t for him-”

“Your son should be a priority over some long lost friend that you can’t even guarantee is still alive-”

“I have faith in your ability to find him. But let’s be honest, it’s not like we really have any leads about how to actually get him back right now, anyways. I don’t plan on being away for too long, and I’m sure that by the time I get back-”

“You seriously don’t think it will take you very long to hunt down an assassin that’s stayed off the books for over a hundred years now? I knew that you could be stupid sometimes, Steve, but this just really-”

“What if it were Clint? Wouldn’t you do anything to go and get him back?”

“Not at the expense of my son!”

Steve scoffed. “That’s rich, considering how little you seem to actually care about him.”

“And what the hell is that supposed to mean?”

“You’ve never spent time with him like a normal family, and you don’t have any idea of how to be a good mother! You treat him like he’s just some random kid who happens to live in the same building as you! You were probably grateful that Tony never tried to give custody back to us, because it was easier for you to just pawn your son off on somebody else-”

“Oh go to hell. As if you were ever a good father. He was always terrified to disappoint you, and you constantly take advantage of that! And after everything that happened last year, you’ve been treating him with the kid gloves-”

“So you want to let him back out into the field after what he did?”

“It’s not like we don’t all have blood on our hands! The only thing that makes this different is that he’s your son!”

“No, the difference is that he killed them unnecessarily because he’s always been a bit too unstable, and a bit too gone on Torunn-”

“So you’re blaming her for what he did?”

“No! God, no. I’m just saying that if he didn’t have his head so stuck on the idea of being with her then maybe he wouldn’t have acted so rashly-”

As fun as it could be sometimes, to listen in while other people fought, because there was a lot of drama that went on around the tower, in this case, Torunn just felt a ball of nerves building up in her stomach, and she couldn’t stand another second of this. Natalia and Steve were supposed to be friends, and listening to them go off at each other like this was just unnerving, and also saddening. And she hated hearing what they thought of their own child.

She gulped once, and then steeled herself before pulling away from the wall and strolling into the kitchen with a casual look on her face. Of course both of them were well aware that she had good enough hearing to have heard them from all the way down the hallway, but considering the fact that most of the tower’s residents had some kind of advanced hearing or another, they all politely pretended that they didn’t.

“Good morning,” she said lightly, hoping to diffuse the tension that was almost a physical weight in the air. 

Natalia and Steve were both gripping at where they kept their main weapons when they were suited up, and Torunn was really glad she’d decided to intervene. She was a lot more durable than either of them, and if she had to jump into the middle of a fight to prevent either of them from hurting each other, then she would do that. 

Steve cleared his throat, and after a few very long seconds, relaxed his muscles enough to drop his arms back down to his sides, and then gave Torunn a watery version of his usual ‘friendly-dad’ look. “You’re up early.”

It seemed rude to say that it was because she’d heard the sound of their fighting, and it would be a lie anyways. Even as they’d gotten really heated, their voices had never raised up above a normal volume. “Couldn’t sleep,” she told them instead. It was the truth, anyways. But telling them why she couldn’t sleep- namely that she was worried about their James- didn’t seem like it would be very helpful considering the current situation.

“Want some coffee?” Natalia offered. She moved to grab the handle of the electric kettle that was always kept on the counter, and her knuckles were white from the death grip she gave it. Torunn warily shook her head, not wanting to risk being poisoned if Natalia’s mood was especially nasty. Just being able to see the woman’s aggravation on her face was a sign that she was royally pissed off. Natalia shrugged and put the kettle down, thankfully unoffended by Torunn’s refusal. 

Before Natalia could ask what Torunn had come to the kitchen before, even though they all knew it was because she’d followed the sound of their argument, Steve spoke up. “It’s actually good that you’re here. You can spread the word around the tower that I’m going to be gone for a few days.”

Torunn crossed her arms over her chest. Of course the argument had gotten totally derailed into something irrelevant, but Torunn had still heard the beginning of it, and she was pretty sure that she knew which adult she agreed with. “Oh? Going out to look for our James?”

At least Steve had the good grace to look slightly guilty about it. “Ah, no. There’s someone else I need to find, and it’s very important that I do so as quickly as possible. I’m sure you understand, right?” It was strange to see him giving her an almost pleading look, as if Torunn’s opinion of him had ever mattered at any point. She and Steve had never been particularly close, though many people assumed otherwise because she was seen as the Steve of the next generation. Even before James had been benched, he hadn’t been naturally moving into a leadership role the way Torunn had been.

“You mean Bucky? The guy you apparently named your son after?”

Steve nodded almost reluctantly. “Yes. You heard that other James talk about him. I can’t just leave my best friend in a situation like that. It’s bad enough that he’s already been there for as long as he has.”

Torunn frowned as she thought that over. “This is more important than your family?”

Instead of blowing up at her like she’d half-expected, Steve maintained the calm and patient demeanor that had always made him a good mentor to the newer Avengers. “Bucky is family. We were brothers who happened to be born to different parents. And he did so much for me over the years. He deserves to be rescued. Of course I love James, and I want to get him home safely, but he’s a bit out of my reach at the moment, so I have to find the person who I actually have a shot at finding. You of all people should understand that family isn’t always about blood, right?”

It was hard to tell if that was intended to be a low blow or not. It did hurt, though, as a reminder that her own parents hadn’t wanted her. They weren’t even together, so the fact that she’d been stranded on Midgard was proof that neither of them wanted anything to do with her. Of course the Avengers had become her family, and she loved Tony and the way he collected up all the stray kids around him. But sometimes, when she actually stopped long enough to let her think about it, Torunn couldn’t help wondering about what was so wrong with her that she hadn’t been wanted by the people responsible for her existence. She narrowed her eyes, and looked down at Steve despite him being taller than her. “I do understand that. I understand that James is part of my family, and has been for as long as I can remember.”

“Bucky has already suffered for too long. I can’t just leave him to keep suffering. From what the other James has told us of his world, I don’t think that we have to worry about James being in too much danger, because his connections to the Avengers will keep him safe. He’ll be fine there, but Bucky is definitely not fine, and I need to find him and help him.”

Part of her did sympathize with Steve, but the other part of her saw it as him abandoning his son the same way Torunn’s own parents had abandoned her. “We don’t even know for sure if there was something of a place swap, or if James is somewhere else entirely right now, or what the deal is with him.”

Steve threw his hands up, finally showing his exasperation. “No matter where he is right now, I can’t do anything to help him get back! I’m not any kind of expert in magic or world jumping, or whatever else was involved in what happened! In these times, where so many people have so many different incredible powers, I’m basically just an ordinary guy! There’s nothing I can do to help James, but if I can find Bucky, then I can help him!”

Torunn nodded once. “Alright. Do whatever you think you have to do.” She kept her own voice steady, the way Steve often told her that a leader was supposed to. “I get how much it sucks to feel helpless about what’s going on. I hate that I can’t do anything to just reach into some voice somewhere and grab James and bring him home. Just… just make sure that you’re here when he does get home.”

Steve gave Torunn a long look, though she wasn’t sure exactly what he was looking for. But then he nodded once. “I will be.” He turned to give Natalia an almost apologetic look, and then left the kitchen.

Once he was gone, the remaining tension dissipated, and Torunn’s shoulders slumped down. Most people thought it would be frightening to show weakness in front of Natalia, but Torunn found the woman weirdly safe. Maybe it was about sticking together as female supers, or maybe it was about both having a lot of family issues and baggage- though that described just about all of the Avengers- but for whatever reason, they got along fairly well for the most part. 

Natalia poured herself a cup of coffee, some of the expensive stuff that made Tony cry when he saw people gulp it down without properly ‘savoring and appreciating’ it. “What did you hear?” 

One of the things Torunn liked about Natalia was that the woman never bothered with bullshit, just cut straight to the point when she needed to know something. “I came in around when you were talking about how you couldn’t believe that Steve was going to head out to find his friend when our James is still missing.”

Natalia made a soft humming noise under her breath, and then took a long drink of her coffee before saying anything else. “I can’t imagine having to make that kind of choice,” she admitted. “And it saddens me that he wouldn’t choose James. But what hurts worse is that I think he was right.”

Torunn furrowed her eyebrows in confusion. “What do you mean? Why would you get so mad at him about leaving-”

Natalia shook her head. “Not that part. I maintain that he made the wrong choice. But he was right when he said that I don’t know how to be a good mother. And I don’t even have the excuse of not knowing what a family is supposed to be, because I’ve always seen the Avengers as family. I don’t know what it is, but maybe there’s just something inside of me that wasn’t meant to have children.”

Even if Torunn considered herself decently close with Natalia, she’d never heard the woman sound so vulnerable, or honest about her own insecurities. She kept her voice gentle, hoping that Natalia wouldn’t just run away now. “Then why did you have a kid in the first place?” There was no judgement in her voice, only curiosity.

Natalia took another sip of coffee before leaning back against the counter and tipping her head to stare up at the ceiling. “I never intended to have kids. And certainly not with Steve Rogers of all people. I had to start pulling myself from missions after a couple of months because there was too much risk in this line of work. I suppose at first I had considered the idea of just getting rid of it, but I changed my mind for all the wrong reasons. I wanted to prove to myself that I was more than just my upbringing, and that I was capable of doing more than just being a spy and killing people. Being pregnant was a surprise, but I took it as an opportunity. It hadn’t even occurred to me that being an Avenger had already made the point I wanted. It wasn’t until I was holding James in my arms for the first time that I realized how in over my head I was. But admitting that I needed help has never been a strong suit of mine, and I assumed that with all these different superheroes as mentors, he wouldn’t really need me to be his parent. And I did feel relieved when Tony kept custody. It felt like I had been set free.”

Torunn pressed her lips together into a flat line as she tried to process all of that. In a lot of ways, James was more similar to her than either of them had ever thought. Neither of them had been wanted by their parents, and they both went through life feeling lost, though they coped with it in different ways. “Do you love James?”

There was no hesitation before Natalia nodded. “I do. But I don’t know what a mother’s love is supposed to feel like, and I often find myself loving him the way I do any of the young Avengers.”

They were both silent for a minute before Torunn spoke soft. “I barely ever see my dad, and I don’t remember ever even meeting my mom. To me, it doesn’t matter whether they love me or not, because either way the point is that they’re not here. The people who really matter to me are the ones who are there for me when I need them. And you’re always there for James when he needs you. I can’t tell you what a normal, healthy family looks like. I don’t think anyone in this tower could. But I do think that you’re a good mom. And James knows that you love him, and he loves you right back. And it’s probably never going to be normal, but it’s a lot more than some people get, and I think you’re doing just fine.”

Natalia finally met Torunn’s eyes, and then nodded once. “Thank you. I know it must be strange for you to hear me talking like this.”

“It’s okay. I don’t mind getting the chance to help you out for once. And besides, I’m a hero. It’s in my job description to help people, right?”

Natalia snorted. “Right.” Then she moved to leave the kitchen. “Best not to leave that mug in the sink unless you want Tony to have evidence that someone was drinking his precious coffee.” Then she seemed to melt into the dimly lit hallway, and Torunn watched her go with a fond smile on her face. 

She was well aware that they were an unconventional family, to put it nicely, but she also really did believe that they were a good family, and that Natalia was a good mom. She just hoped that her James would come home soon, so that she could apologize to him for all the years where she hadn’t treated him like family. 

Torunn went over to the sink to wash Natalia’s discarded mug, not wanting to deal with Tony’s sad little puppy dog eyes, and she tried to think of ways that they might be able to get James home.


	25. Chapter 25/Heroes

“Okay, so you know that series, the one about the criminals who are constantly stealing boats and racing with each other?”

James furrowed his eyebrows as he looked at Torunn in confusion. “No? I mean, I’m not really a huge movie person, but I think I would remember that. What’s it called again?”

Torunn held up one finger. “Hang on, let me just look it up. That is the magic of the internet, you know.” She pulled out her phone, and James watched as she typed in ‘movie series where they drive fast boats’. “Hm, let’s see. The first article that comes up is the top ten boat movies of all time… ah, here it is, The Fast and the Furious.”

James’ eyes widened. “I’m sorry, what? This universe has those movies but they’re about… boats?”

Torunn shrugged, clearly not seeing why that was so weird. “What do they drive in your universe? Trains?”

“Cars!” James shouted with some exasperation. “Of course racing movies would be about cars!” He sighed, and slumped back against the couch. “Alright, that’s out, it’s official that I need to get home as soon as possible. I don’t think I can survive learning anything else about what differences there are between our worlds.”

Before Torunn could make some kind of witty retort to that, there was a loud booming noise, and then suddenly Lolví was standing right in the middle of the living room in all his blue-skinned glory. Torunn narrowed her eyes and immediately glanced at James. “Are you just incapable of listening to people?”

Lolví rolled his eyes. “I do what I wish, Thorsdottir, and I listen to no one, least of all a mere mortal. But I have graciously decided to extend my help in this situation, because I believe that there will be some great benefit to me.”

Torunn crossed her arms over her chest. “And what benefits would those be, exactly?”

Lolví shrugged. “My business is none of yours. But let’s just say that living in a universe without the Mad Titan in it would be beneficial to my long term health.”

James suddenly leaned forward. “Wait, you want to actually stay in my world?” He had no idea how that would work. Loki would probably not be happy to have a constant reminder of his true heritage, and this Lolví was clearly a bit of a loose cannon, so James wasn’t sure if he wanted him to be in his world.

On the other hand, it’s not like there was anything James could do to actually control what Lolví did with his life, and there was the part where it seemed like Lolví was the only one who would be able to actually get James home. “I will not remain in any one place,” Lolví said stiffly. “I am of a nomadic people, and I would not stop my lifestyle now. Not to mention that I have people to rule over, and no illusions about what would happen if an army of Jotun walked through some strange portal. It would be seen as an invasion. But I am more than capable of building a bridge, once I have an idea of what path I need to take. I think I have found that. I need you to be an anchor to your world. Give me your hand.”

“Wait, we’re doing this right now?” James squeaked out. 

Lolví arched one eyebrow. “Can you think of some better time? Would you like to stay here more than you had indicated when you dared to summon me?”

James slowly shook his head. “No, no, I definitely do want to go home.”

Lolví nodded, like that’s what he had expected James to say. “Then give me your hand.” James reluctantly held out his arm, and winced as Lolví grabbed his hand, making it feel like he’d just been dunked into a bucket of ice. Clearly Lolví did not care about being gentle with the person who was supposed to act as an anchor. James closed his eyes, not sure what to expect. 

,,,

Torunn groaned and rolled over, wanting to swat at her alarm to turn it off. It was still dark in the room, which meant that it was definitely too early for her to be awake. If there was some Avengers emergency, then the tower alarm would be going off, but since it wasn’t, she felt safe in wanting to stay asleep.

But the jarring noise was rather insistent, and then Torunn realized that it wasn’t her alarm, but her ringtone. She let out another loud groan before wiggling around to find her phone, which had ended up edged between her hip and the bed, and held it up to her ear without bothering to open her eyes again. “Hello?”

“It’s Wanda Maximoff. I think I might know how to return the Jameses both to their proper worlds.”

Well that was a sufficient enough wake up call. Torunn was quick to get to her feet and scramble around to get dressed before hurrying out. It wasn’t until she was knocking on Wanda’s apartment door that she realized she was wearing two different shoes, and her shirt buttons were definitely not lined up properly. 

The door swung open, and Wanda looked tired, but still more put together than Torunn was. She led Torunn into the living room, where there was already a cup of hot coffee waiting for her. Caffeine had almost no effect on her Asgardian body, but sometimes Torunn liked to convince herself that it had a placebo effect of sorts. 

If she was Midgardian, she definitely would have badly burned her throat, but as it was, she barely noticed that the drink was still scalding, and Wanda seemed too distracted to say anything about it. “I actually feel rather foolish right now. I didn’t even stop to think about why the James from another world looks identical to our James, despite being ten years older and being a very different person. But then I got a visit from someone else from that other world, some messed up version of your uncle Loki, who told me a bit about the situation. And that’s when I realized what must have happened. The two Jameses never physically swapped places, because if they did, the young body would be in the other world, and the older body would be here. But instead, they’ve only swapped minds. Which makes a lot of sense, when you consider that a lot of my power tends to be based around minds and thoughts. Not-Loki got real pissed when he realized he wouldn’t be able to take a stroll around this world whenever he feels like it, but this is good. If it’s all about the brains, then I might actually be able to swap them back now. We need to go get the other James and sit down to figure this out.”

Torunn nodded, eager to get her own James back. Even though the idea of it just being a mental swap made it sound like her James wasn’t in as much danger, she still was worried about him. And she also missed him, against all odds. It wasn’t something she had ever expected to feel, but apparently it had taken his disappearance for her to realize that she didn’t want him to be gone.

She ran home to the tower, since it was much quicker than taking a cab and she had too much sudden adrenaline to burn, and then leapt up onto James’ bed to wake him up suddenly. He was startled awake, and then Torunn had to practically drag him out of bed before he would actually wake up enough to listen to her and get dressed. But once he realized that there was a chance of getting back to his own home, he went into speed mode. 

,,,

James jerked back as he felt like his entire body was being iced over. “Please let go of me,” he got up without quite whimpering in pain. Torunn grabbed at both Lolví and James to yank them apart, and then looked at James’ hand in concern. “Are you alright?”

He winced as he prodded at the blue-tinged hand, and then nodded. “I’ll be fine. I heal faster than the average human, remember?” That didn’t mean that it didn’t hurt a lot right at the moment, though. He looked over at Lolví. “What the hell was that for?”

Lolví scowled. “You’re useless, and so is the world that you’ve come from. Be grateful that I’m not feeling to be in a smashing mood at the moment, or you would be blood and paste on the floor. Do not presume that you have the right to call upon me again, and if you attempt it, then you shall thoroughly regret it.” And then he was gone as quickly as he had appeared.

James turned to give Torunn an apologetic look. “I’m so sorry about that. I should have just listened to you about not being able to trust him in the first place, but I felt like I had to do everything in my power to at least try to get back home and-” 

Torunn sighed, and held his frostbitten hand gently. “It’s fine, I get it. I can’t blame you for wanting to get home. This isn’t exactly a friendly and welcoming environment, even to people who have grown up in it. I know that I would never want to bring kids into a world like this. And I should have known that your stubbornness would make you do what you thought was right either way, so I guess that it’s partially on me too.”

“It would be crazy to blame yourself for the fact that I-” he was suddenly cut off by a piercing pain. It felt like someone was driving a spike through his skull, and he had to close his eyes and reach up to clutch at his head. His injured hand felt completely numb in comparison to what his head felt like.

He was vaguely aware of Torunn calling his name, but it slowly faded away, only for him to hear someone else call out for him. “James.”

He opened his eyes, but didn’t see the apartment that he shared with Peter, he just saw a black emptiness, and he and the other person were the only ones in it. He squinted, but couldn’t see well enough, so he slowly walked closer to the person who had called out to him. Then he gasped once his sight was clearer. It felt like looking in a funhouse mirror to see himself standing there, the way that he remembered looking, but with a smug look on his face that didn’t quite belong. “You’re the other James?” he guessed.

The other male nodded. “Yup. And Wanda seems to have figured out how to fix this whole mess. We only swapped minds, not physical bodies, so we don’t need to open any kind of portal or entrance or anything like that. She said that we should just need to…” he trailed off before reaching up to grab James’ arm. 

It felt like a very intense static shock, and between one blink and the next, James was suddenly facing the older looking version of himself. Even without any landmarks in the area, he got the feeling that he was on the opposite side of the void than he’d been standing in a moment ago. It was a pretty disorienting effect after seeing himself in the older body for the past few weeks. “Ah-” and there was his voice, sounding the way that it was supposed to. It was one of the few things that he would miss. “I’m sorry about your life, man.”

The older James was looking down at his hand. “Yeah, maybe that’s not what you need to be apologizing to me about right now.” He sighed, and then shook his head. “Don’t worry about it, kid. Just go home. You’ve got someone waiting for you there.”

James’ eyes widened. “When you wake up, Torunn should be there in your apartment. Uh, you might want to ask her to help you catch up on everything that’s happened, because it’s been a lot of stuff in a short amount of time. And I’m pretty sure that your girlfriend wants to break up with you.”

They were both silent for a moment, and then the older James started laughing. “Alright, fair enough, you tried to do your own amount of meddling, can’t really blame you for that. Well, we probably won’t be seeing each other again. Any last words of wisdom you think we should exchange?”

James tilted his head to the side as he thought about it. He let out a slow breath, and then shook his head. “No, I don’t think that there is. Just uh, good luck with everything, yeah?”

“Yeah, same to you. And uh, try not to let go of all the good things in your life.”

James nodded, and then remembered something else. “Oh! And make sure you find Lorna and tell her what happened, okay? I wouldn’t want her to get too worried.” After the older James agreed, they stared at each other for a few long seconds. “So should we hug or something?” 

The older James thought about it for a moment, and then shook his head. “Nah, it would be too weird. And besides, I don’t want to mess with any of your friend’s witchy business. So, uh, just turn around and keep walking, I guess, and I’ll do the same in this direction, and everything should work out.” He saluted once, and then held up his middle finger, and James returned both gestures. 

After a few more seconds of just standing there awkwardly, James decided to be the first to move, and he turned around. It was a very bizarre thing to walk forward when he could see literally nothing, and couldn’t even feel a solid surface beneath him, but he moved his legs in walking motions. There was no way to really know if it propelled him forward, though, because there was nothing to look at for reference to see if they got bigger as he got closer.

He wasn’t sure how long he’d been walking, feeling a bit foolish, when he glanced back over his shoulder and found that he couldn’t see anything in that direction either, including the older James. He looked down at his hands, and was glad that he could see himself just fine. Apparently it wasn’t dark in this place, just empty.

And then he eventually reached a point where he felt tired, and he felt a bit panicked because the other James hadn’t mentioned that this was going to happen, which made him worry that it wasn’t supposed to be happening, but he couldn’t fight the sudden exhaustion, and eventually his eyes drooped shut, and he felt like he was falling.

,,,

“James, please wake up, whichever one you are.”

His head was pounding, like he’d had way too much to drink the night before, but then his foggy mind slowly filled with memories of everything that had happened recently, and then his eyes shot open and he bolted up. He was lying down on a familiar couch in a familiar apartment, and he almost thought that he might start crying with relief.

He looked around, and saw Wanda slumped over in the seat across from him, looking exhausted. “Oh, good, you’re awake.”

His limbs all felt a little shaky, but James quickly stumbled over to Wanda to pull her into a hug. “It’s so good to see you again! Not that I have anything against your sister, but it’s nice to actually see you again.”

Wanda slowly reached up to return the hug, but then paused at his words. “My sister?”

James frowned. “Oh, I guess it’s possible that she doesn’t exist in this world. But if she does, then you might want to look for her. She can control anything that’s made of metal, and she’s also a cool person.”

“I see.” Wanda sounded like she didn’t know what to do with the knowledge that she may have another sibling lying around somewhere that she’d never known about.

Then he heard footsteps, and turned to see Torunn walking out of the kitchen. And she looked so young compared to the Torunn he’s started to get used to, and yet it still felt so much like coming home to look at her. And it didn’t matter that he already knew what she would look like or be like as an adult, all that mattered was that it was Torunn, his Torunn, the one that he’d gotten to know and understand all his life.

She was giving him an uncertain look, so he quickly got to his feet and went over to her. “It’s really good to see you again.”

Torunn grinned, and dropped the mug she’d been holding so that she could pull James into a hug. “Welcome home!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well we are coming to an end here folks! Maybe only a chapter or two left!


	26. Chapter 26/Heroes

Torunn knew that she was giving James some weird looks, but she couldn’t help it. For the past few weeks she’d been working with a naive teenager trapped in the man’s body, and he looked exactly the same now as he had five minutes ago. “So you’re really the proper James Rogers of this world?” She’d already asked him that twice already, but felt like she needed to ask again because he he’d only given a grunt and a nod instead of a proper answer.

James sighed, and then turned to look at her with less exasperation than she would have expected. “Yes, I’m the James that’s supposed to be in this world. I’m just a bit, uh… do you think jet lag applies when you go back ten years and then forward again?”

Torunn laughed. “I’m not sure if anyone’s ever asked that question before.” Then they were both silent for a minute, and Torunn had to force herself not to twist her hands together nervously. Why would she be nervous? Well, there was the part where she hadn’t spoken to the real James in an uncomfortably long time. She cleared her throat, and decided to go for a distraction before the subject of their communication could get brought up. “So did you go to the world the other James was from? What was it like there?”

James tilted his head to the side to think for a moment. “It was strange,” he said finally. “It was like the colors of the world itself were brighter than anything here. Like they were all the same as the colors here, but more vibrant. It felt almost blinding until I got used to it. And I didn’t feel like cowering in fear in the presence of my mother. And my father was still alive, and probably one of the stupidestly noble people I’ve ever talked to before. You were there, younger of course. You were very different, and yet somehow the same. And that version of you made me realize that I have been a total moron for a very long time.” He turned to face her more fully, resting his hands on his thighs. “Torunn, no matter what you say to this, I have to tell you the the truth. I’m in love with you. And I have been for almost longer than I can remember. I just- I just needed to say it out loud.” 

He closed his eyes, and waited for Torunn to respond to that bold declaration. Last she’d heard, he was dating some chef. And there was the fact that they’d barely spoken ever since Torunn had been disowned by the Avengers. “Why would you just tell me that now if you’ve really felt that way for years?”

James shrugged, and peeked his eyes open to look at her. “I don’t know. I guess I was being a bit of a coward. I was afraid of everything between us being changed and ruined, but in the end it’s only made me miserable, and our relationship was ruined by other forces anyways. You don’t have to feel the same way, Torunn, I just wanted you to know how I feel.

Torunn took in a deep breath, and then slowly let it out. “You know that no matter what happens, I’m most likely going to outlive you by thousands of years, right? We’re not even the same species. And the last boyfriend I had dumped me like a hot potato as soon as he realized that I’m not just some perfect hero like I pretend to be. Are you aware of the fact that I’m not perfect, James?” If he’d just been idealizing her all this time, then it meant he loved the idea of her more than the actual person.

James hesitantly reached out to take one of Torunn’s hands, and she let him do it. “I don’t care about that. All the good things and bad things and in between things are what make you who you are. You’re perfect for me.”

Torunn gave his hand a gentle squeeze. “I don’t know if I can use the word ‘love’, at least not right now. It feels like we’re still so new to each other, even after growing up side by side. But I do have strong feelings for you, James.”

“What kind of feelings?” he asked in a whisper.

Torunn leaned forward. “I kinda feel like I want to kiss you,” she whispered back. Then she reached up to grab the back of James’ head to pull him forward so that they could actually kiss. It wasn’t perfect, of course. And there was still so much else to deal with. She hadn’t heard anything about James breaking up with his current girlfriend, which would need to be dealt with. And Torunn did still feel a bit raw about how things ended with Victor, considering the fact that he had proposed and she had said yes and had wanted to marry him. 

But she wanted to at least try this out, and see where it went. She wasn’t giving any eternal vows to anyone anytime soon, and there was still a lot to catch James up on about the past few weeks. Hell, they might not even live long enough to try out a serious relationship if they didn’t manage to fight off the being who wanted to destroy everything. Those were all problems for later, though. They could wait at least a couple of hours. For now, Torunn just wanted to sit with James and enjoy having him back in her life.

,,,

James felt like he didn’t want to let go of Torunn ever again, though after a few long seconds, she did pull away from him. She was still grinning, though, which was probably a good sign. Wanda snorted from where she was still sitting. “Someone better clean up that mess.”

Torunn’s face went slightly pink as her eyes flicked down to the tea that had spilled out onto the carpet. “Ah, I’m sorry, I’ll get it. It was just that, uh, well I’m glad that you’re finally back!”

James reached up to scratch at the back of his neck. “Sorry, didn’t mean to be such a distraction to you.” Then he let out a loud sigh as he realized that he had a lot he needed to explain about the past couple of weeks, and that he probably wouldn’t have a lot of time to talk to Torunn about anything. “Once that’s cleaned up, we need to get back to the tower. I need to talk to my parents.” He saw the slight grimace on Torunn’s face, and his heart started beating faster. What if Steve Rogers’ fate from the other world had happened here and-? 

“I’m really sorry, James,” she said quietly. “Your mom really fought with him about it so that he wouldn’t go, but he learned from your counterpart that an old friend of his is still alive, and felt like he had to go out right away to look for the man. He promised that he’d be back by the time you got back, but he had no way of knowing that Wanda would figure things out so soon after he took off.”

James’ shoulders slumped down. “It’s fine. Bucky’s a cool guy, and deserves to be rescued. And there’s all the other Avengers to talk to as well. I didn’t really need to see my dad specifically.”

They took a cab back to the tower, and quickly found Natalia. She took one look at James, and then pulled him into a hug, whispering to him in Russian even though she knew he wouldn’t understand any of it. He got the general idea, though. He was eager to return the hug. They weren’t generally a particularly physically affectionate family, and he wasn’t going to turn down the opportunity for comfort while he had it.

Once everyone had settled down on the couches on the common floor, James cleared his throat and began explaining a few things he’d seen in the other world. Not all of it, of course, because there were parts that just seemed like they would be demoralizing to say out loud to these people, but a lot. Including the fact that if everything happened in a similar way to how it had in the other world, they had about a decade before a giant alien decided to come to Earth and mess up everything. 

Natalia frowned at the news. “Well at least we have more time to prepare than those in the other version of this world. I suppose this means that at least some good has come from your disappearance, though I can assure you that there is not much. We all missed you here, James.”

Eventually, Natalia got up to go track down the other Avengers and let them know that the missing teen had been returned home safely. Torunn and James were left sitting opposite each other, and presumably Torunn was feeling just as awkward as James was. He opened his mouth to say something, anything, but his throat was suddenly far too dry, and he couldn’t force any words out of his mouth.

Luckily, Torunn had something to say of her own, and she cleared her throat once. “I missed you a lot while you were gone. I know that we’ve been friends for a while, and I know that you don’t have many of those. But I also know that I somewhat took advantage of that fact. I didn’t treat you very well at all. More like you were a loyal pet following me around than an actual person, and that was wrong of me. It was easy to see you like that, because it’s how most of our fellow Avengers see you and I. But that doesn’t make it right, and I guess what I’m trying to say is that I’m sorry. For all of that. For making you think that you had no one to go to with your frustrations but a woman who is twice your age and has a tenuous grip on her control of reality.”

James furrowed his eyebrows as Torunn started to speak, but he let her get through all of it. It was obviously something that had been on her mind for at least a little while, and he didn’t begrudge her the chance to get it all out before he responded. “I’ve never seen it that way. Honestly, I didn’t. I know that sometimes it felt like I was just begging for scraps of your attention, but that doesn’t change the fact that I enjoyed being friends with you.”

There were a few seconds of silence before Torunn hesitantly spoke again. “The other James said that he’s madly in love with the Torunn of his universe, and that he couldn’t imagine there possibly being a world where that isn’t the case.”

James could feel his face heating up, but he wasn’t going to just run away from this, even if he couldn’t get any indication of Torunn’s feelings just by looking at her face. “He’s probably right,” James admitted quietly. “I know that we’re still young, and it probably sounds stupid to say something like this, but I don’t think I’ll ever feel about anyone else in my entire life, the way that I feel about you.”

Torunn ducked her head down, letting her hair fall forward enough to curtain around her face and block off her expression. “I really, really missed you while you were gone. Definitely a lot more than I ever would have thought to be possible. It’s really true when they say that you don’t know what you have until it’s gone. I had no idea how much you meant to me until suddenly you were out of my life. I thought I was going to die when I first realized that you were missing. You’ve always been a constant in my life, and the idea of you just being gone seemed so impossible, and so awful.” Then she abruptly looked up at James again. “I know that I love you, because we’re Avengers together, and that makes us family, but I’m starting to think that the love I feel for you isn’t… familial. Peter’s my best friend and I love him, but it isn’t the same thing that I feel when I think about you.” She gave James a long look before continuing. “The other James wanted to ‘date’ me in exchange for cooperating with us getting you back, and we didn’t really date at all, but it did get me thinking about what it might be like, if I were to date the real you.”

James’ eyes widened, and he felt like his heart was beating so loudly that surely everyone in the entire city could hear it. “And what did you think about that idea?”

“I thought that it sounded really nice, and that it’s something I’d like to try.”

James grinned, and leapt over the coffee table between them so that he could pull Torunn into a hug. “I’d really like that too. I really like you!”

Then Torunn leaned back to look James in the eyes. “There’s a lot we have to talk about,” she said in a more serious voice. “What happened last year… something like that can’t happen again. I know that you just want to protect me, but I can look out for myself, and what you did was revenge more than anything. I don’t want you to think that just because our relationship has changed, you have permission to act even crazier than before.”

James gulped, and then nodded once. “I know. Everyday since I did that, I’ve regretted it. Even the James in the world of villains has never killed anybody before.”

Torunn ran her hand through his hair in a comforting manner. “I believe you. Don’t worry, everything is going to be okay.”

,,,

Tony looked back and forth between Torunn and James, one eyebrow arched. “What?” He put his mug down while it was still mostly full of coffee, which was immediate proof that he’d genuinely been taken aback by the announcement that he’d just heard.

Torunn cleared her throat, and shot James a slightly annoyed look before turning back to Tony to try speaking in a gentler way. “Technically, you’re both of our guardian, even though obviously James was raised by his own parents, and we’ve never been made to feel like siblings, and-”

Tony held up one hand, and Torunn immediately stopped talking. “So you’re asking me to dissolve my guardianship of James?”

James nodded. “I’m not saying that you’re a bad guardian, or anything like that, but you have to admit that it’s a little strange that you’re still legally my guardian even though both of my parents are alive and mostly capable of serving as my parents. And if they’re my parents according to the law, too, then it would just make it easier for Torunn and I to be together.”

Tony picked his mug back up to take a long sip from it. “I see.” He stared at them both for a long few seconds before shrugged. “Alright, why not. You’ve got weird enough childhood stories as it is, so I’m sure that telling your kids you got new guardians just to get laid won’t even make them bat an eye.”

Torunn gently punched Tony in the shoulder (even by Midgardian standards). “Don’t say stuff like that, it’s gross.” Then she gave him a hug. “But also, thank you for agreeing to this.”

Tony shrugged. “Yeah, yeah, gratitude, gratitude, whatever.” He gave Torunn a fond smile. “You know that I just want you two to be happy, right?” 

“Thanks.” Torunn and James spoke practically at the same time.

,,,

James grinned as he watched Torunn wave her sword around for the cheering civilians that were standing all around them. It was the first time in a while where he’d actually been allowed to walk with the other young Avengers in a parade, because it was the first time in a year that he’d been allowed to go out on a mission with them.

Some of the other Avengers had verbalized their concern that James and Torunn’s relationship would mess with the team dynamics, and that James would make too many mistakes his first time back in the field. But everyone (including James) had been pleasantly surprised to find that that wasn’t the case. They were both able to act professionally and fluidly with the rest of the team rather than only focusing on each other.

Once everyone had retired back to the tower, James grabbed Torunn to pull her aside. As soon as they were in a room with no one else in it, they exchanged a few kisses before settling down onto the couch in there to watch a movie together. James hoped that the alarm wasn’t going to go off to send them all out on another mission, but he also knew that even if that did happen, he and Torunn would still see each other out there, and would come here and see each other again at the end of the day. “Is it weird to say that I’m almost glad to have been sent to a scary alternate future where everyone is villainous?”

Torunn laughed. “A little. But it’s alright. I’m sorry that you had to deal with all of that, but I guess that I’m a bit glad about it too, because it made me realize a lot of stuff about myself, and about you, and about how I feel about you. Now shut up so we can watch the movie.”

James silently nodded, but didn’t turn to look back at the screen. He was too busy looking at Torunn, and he knew that he had to have a pretty sappy look on his face, but he didn’t care. He was happier than he could ever remember being before in almost his entire life, and everything was just perfect.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The end! There were a few more things that I could have wrapped up here, but I felt like they would bog things down too much, so I've decided to leave it off here, while everyone is happy and things are looking good. Thank you to everyone who has read this story! Your support and comments have really encouraged me to keep going with this story, even though I had originally planned to abandon it after the first couple of chapters!


End file.
